All 56 passengers aboard an aeroplane that crashed in southwestern Turkey have died, officials said.

The Atlasjet MD83 jetliner went down shortly before it was due to land in the city of Isparta on Friday morning.

"Rescue teams have reached the wreckage... There are no survivors," Tuncay Doganer, chief executive of Atlasjet, told a televised news conference.

The plane was reportedly found in the village of Cukuroren.

A search-and-rescue helicopter which landed near the wreckage of the plane near a hill to the northwest of the airport "found no signs of life," Doganer said.

He also said the cause of the crash was not known.

He ruled out weather conditions as a possible cause, saying there was no fog or strong winds at the time of the crash.

Source: Agencies

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