Dubai, sep 04,2010 : A cargo plane crashed near a busy highway in Dubai on Friday, sources said.A UPS cargo plane with two crew members on board crashed shortly after takeoff Friday outside Dubai, officials said.

Ambulances rushed to the location of the crash, near Dubai airport. Initial reports said the crew members have been killed.

The plane was set ablaze before crashing. It is believed that the plane belonged to an unidentified US company.

The state news agency WAM, quoting the General Civil Aviation Authority, reported that the “bodies of two pilots” had been found at the scene, but UPS did not confirm that.

The plane went down inside an Emirati air base near a busy highway intersection about 10 miles (16 kilometers) southeast of Dubai’s international airport. WAM said the crash occurred in an unpopulated desert area, suggesting there may not have been casualties on the ground.

Smoke rose from the crash site, which was shielded from the highway by walls. Migrant laborers from a nearby camp gathered along the roadside to watch.

UPS spokeswoman Kristen Petrella said the Boeing 747-400 — which has a wingspan of 212 feet (64.6 meters) and length of 232 feet (70.7 meters) — went down at about 8 p.m. in Dubai . Flight 6 was en route to the UPS hub in Cologne, Germany, she said. Petrella said the plane had two crew members but the company has not confirmed any casualties.

Two U.S. aviation experts said the plane had taken off and then turned around and was returning to land when the accident took place. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorized to speak to the media.

UPS, an Atlanta-based company formally known as United Parcel Service Inc. and the world’s largest shipping company, dispatched an investigation team to the scene.

A witness, who refused to give his name, said he was sitting on the balcony of his home when he heard a “big boom.”"There was fire and too much smoke,” he said.