Onlookers watch the search operation for the lost Lao Airlines plane on the banks of the Mekong River in Pakse, Laos, Oct. 17, 2013.
Search Continues for Victims of Lao Air Crash
Officials in Laos announced that 17 bodies have been recovered from the site where a Lao Airlines passenger plane crashed into the Mekong River on Wednesday.
Authorities say the search for the remaining 35 passengers and crew is continuing on Friday.
The Lao Airlines French-made ATR-72 turboprop plane was flying Wednesday from the capital, Vientiane, to the southern town of Pakse when it crashed into the river in southern Laos. The government says it is likely that there are no survivors.
A passenger manifest showed 17 Lao, seven French, five Australians, five Thais, three Koreans, two Vietnamese, and one person each from the United States, Canada, China, Malaysia and Taiwan were on board.
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