UPDATE: The pilot and co-pilot have died in the crash, according to local media, which cited the Birmingham Mayor's Office.

According to published air safety data from several sources, this is the first fatal crash of an Airbus A300 Series 600 jet since the November 2001 crash of American Airlines Flight 587, which crashed into houses in Queens, after taking off from New York City's JFK airport, with the loss of 265 lives.

The original story is below:

A large United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) cargo plane crashed early Wednesday near a Birmingham, Ala., airport, the Federal Aviation Administration confirmed, USA Today reports.

The A300 cargo plane, which doesn’t carry passengers, had left Louisville, Ky. before crashing around 6 a.m. in an open field now owned by the airport, according to WVTM, a local NBC-affiliate television station in Alabama.

There was said to be debris near the plane stretching for about half a mile.

The condition of two crew members aboard the aircraft wasn't immediately known, a company spokesman said.

The Birmingham Airport Authority told CNN that the crash took place near Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport, but the crash hasn't affected airport operations, a spokeswoman said.

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