The Ethiopian Airlines plane that crashed killing 157 people was making a strange rattling noise and trailed smoke and debris as it swerved above a field of panicked cows before hitting earth, according to witnesses. Flight 302 took off from the Ethiopian capital on Sunday morning bound for Nairobi. The pilot had requested permission to return, saying he was having problems - but it was too late. Half a dozen witnesses interviewed by Reuters in the farmland where the plane came down reported smoke billowing out behind, while four of them also described a loud sound. "It was a loud rattling sound. Like straining and shaking metal," said Turn Buzuna, a 26-year-old housewife and farmer who lives about 300 meters (328 yards) from the crash site. "Everyone says they have never heard that kind of sound from a plane and they are under a flight path," she added. Malka Galato, 47, a farmer whose field the plane crashed in, also described smoke and sparks from the back. "The plane was very close to the ground and it made a turn... Cows that were grazing in the fields ran in panic," he said. Tamirat Abera, 25, was walking past the field at the time. He said the plane turned sharply, trailing white smoke and items like clothes and papers, then crashed about 300 m away. "It tried to climb but it failed and went down nose first," he said. "There was fire and white smoke which then turned black." As the plane had only just taken off, it was loaded with fuel. "When it was hovering, fire was following its tail, then it tried to lift its nose," said another witness, Gadisa Benti. "When it passed over our house, the nose pointed down and the tail raised up. It went straight to the ground with its nose, it then exploded."<br/>
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A prize-winning author, a football official and a team of humanitarian workers were among those who perished in the crash of Ethiopian Airlines Flight 30, government officials and employers said on Monday. Sunday's crash, minutes after take-off from Addis Ababa for a flight to Nairobi, inflicted a particularly heavy toll on the United Nations, which has large offices in both cities. At least 21 staff members were on board, said Stephane Dujarric, a UN spokesman. The Addis Ababa-Nairobi route is also popular with tourists and businesspeople, who are drawn to East Africa's popular safari parks and fast-growing economies. The 157 victims, including 149 passengers and eight crew members, came from more than 30 countries, the airline said. They included 32 Kenyans, 18 Canadians, nine Ethiopians and eight each from Italy, China and the United States. The number of U.N. staff members and aid workers from other agencies on board may have been higher than usual because of a week-long conference convened by the UNEP in Nairobi, which opened on Monday. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said the world body was in grief. “Our colleagues were women and men - junior professionals and seasoned officials - hailing from all corners of the globe and with a wide array of expertise,” Guterres said. “They all had one thing in common - a spirit to serve the people of the world and to make it a better place for us all.” Pius Adesanmi, a Nigerian-born professor with the English Language and Literature Department at Carleton University in Ottawa, was among the victims from Canada. He was awarded the Penguin Prize for African Writing in non-fiction in 2010 for a collection of essays titled, "You’re Not a Country, Africa!"<br/>
United and the FAA plan to inspect a Boeing 737-900 twin-engine jetliner that experienced an engine shutdown shortly before landing in Houston late on Sunday, the airline said Monday. Some passengers who were evacuated from the plane experienced minor injuries, airline spokeswoman Rachel Rivas said. Flight 1168 from Newark, New Jersey, with 174 passengers and six crew aboard, experienced an engine shutdown shortly before landing around 10:30 p.m. CDT (0330 GMT on Monday), the FAA said. The agency said there was no evidence of fire or smoke from the engine. Boeing did not immediately comment. "The FAA and the airline will be taking a closer look at the aircraft today," FAA spokesman Lynn Lunsford said.<br/>
Brazil's Azul has signed a deal to purchase key assets of financially troubled Avianca Brazil, including 30 Airbus A320-family aircraft, for up to $105m. Azul has also agreed to take over Avianca Brazil's air operator's certificate and 70 pairs of airport slots. "The offer is nonbinding and remains subject to a number of conditions precedent, including due diligence, regulatory and creditors' approvals, and the conclusion of Avianca Brazil's judicial reorganisation," says Azul, estimating that the process could take up to three months. Avianca Brazil filed for bankruptcy protection in December 2018, as it faced threats of aircraft repossession by lessors. Azul says the purchased assets will be transferred to a new entity free of all debt and liabilities. Earlier this year, Azul took over two Airbus A320neos previously operated by Avianca Brazil when the struggling airline shed part of its fleet. Azul had earlier denied that it was in talks to purchase Avianca Brazil, following local media reports that Azul founder David Neeleman was considering making an offer for the airline.<br/>