The cause of the crash remains unclear, and no details about casualties have been given.
Also in social media was released short footage that showed wreck of a plane with U.S. Air Forces emblem.
E-11A is the military variant of the civil Bombardier BD-700 Global Express for use as overhead communications-relay platform in SW Asia. It carries Northrop Grumman Battlefield Airborne Communications Node, or BACN, allowing disparate battlefield communications systems to share data. BACN was deployed on a test Bombardier BD-700 & originally designated RC-700A under reconnaissance classification. Re-designated E-11A under special electronics installation category.
BREAKING:
— 🏴☠️ FJ 🏴☠️ (@Natsecjeff) January 27, 2020
Taliban release official statement on Ghazni plane crash. Statement says plane crashed "noon hours today resulting in all crew & high-ranking CIA members killed".
Statement does not explicitly say that Taliban shot it down. #Afghanistan pic.twitter.com/Ouioq6gYfL
| Updates from the Afghan press at 2:30 p.m. ET: |
[ToloNews] The aircraft crashed in Deh Yak district in the central province of Ghazni, south of Kabul, on Monday afternoon.
Footage seen by TOLOnews taken in Ghazni on Monday showed the burning wreckage of an aircraft with US Air Force markings, and US forces in Afghanistan have confirmed that the aircraft was a US Bombardier E-11A. TOLOnews earlier referred to the aircraft as a Bombardier Global Express jet, which is a commercial designation of the same aircraft.
The AP reported that the Bombardier E-11A is a U.S. Air Force electronic surveillance plane, saying: "The so-called Battlefield Airborne Communications Node can be carried on unmanned or crewed aircraft like the E-11A. It is used by the military to extend the range of radio signals and can be used to convert the output of one device to another, such as connecting a radio to a telephone."
The AP said the US military uses the system as “Wi-Fi in the sky,” in areas where communications are otherwise difficult, elevating signals above obstacles like mountains."
The Ministry of Defense said a convoy of Afghan Special Forces had been dispatched to Deh Yak district from Ghazni city, which is 25 kilometers west of the crash site.
Amid confusion about the plane earlier in the day, the Civil Aviation Authority in a statement posted on its Facebook page stated that no local, civilian planes crashed in Ghazni and that all flights were normal on Monday.
The US forces in Afghanistan in a statement confirmed the incident.
“A US Bombardier E-11A crashed today in Ghazni province, Afghanistan. While the cause of crash is under investigation, there are no indications the crash was caused by enemy fire. We will provide additional information as it becomes available,” the US forces-Afghanistan spokesman Col. Sonny Leggett said.
Taliban claims that additional aircraft have crashed are false, he added.
Taliban claim they shot down a US plane
[KhaamaPress] Taliban claimed they shot down a US plane in the Deh Yak district of Ghazni province, an area that is under the control of Taliban militants.
“A US plane was shot down and many American officers were killed”, Zabihullah Mujahid, a popular Taliban spokesperson hidden behind the internet and social media tweeted.
The plane flying for intelligence missions shot down in the Sadokhil area of Deh Yak district in Ghazni province on Monday afternoon, Mujahid said.
He claimed high-ranking CIA officers had been on board the plane.
The US military said it was investigating reports of a crash in Taliban-controlled territory.
Tariq Ghazniwal, a local journalist, said he saw two bodies but others had counted a total of five.
The aircraft in the footage appeared to show a US air force E-11 Battlefield Airborne Communications Node. It has been described by the air force as “Wi-Fi in the sky”, a roving communications satellite to support missions in remote areas without existing infrastructure.
Earlier this afternoon, Afghan media agencies citing local officials in Ghazni reported that an Ariana Afghan plane crashed with 83 people on board, but later the state-owned aviation company declined the report and said their flights have been conducted normally.