Riyadh/Cairo, July 27 (DPA) A Lufthansa cargo plane crashed Tuesday as it was attempting to land in the Saudi Arabian capital of Riyadh, authorities said.

The pilot and co-pilot were being taken to hospital, the Saudi General Authority of Civil Aviation said, without elaborating on the condition of the two people who were on board.

Black smoke came from the plane as it started to descend over Riyadh before it crashed and broke in half, the al-Arabiya satellite channel reported.

Firefighters and other emergencies services were at the scene, trying to extinguish the fire.