Chinese state TV: Eight Chinese passengers were on crashed Ethiopian Airlines plane

Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737 (Imago/Aviation-Stock)

Eight Chinese passengers were aboard an Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737 commercial jet to Nairobi that crashed on Sunday, Chinese state TV said.

CCTV said on a social media site that "eight Chinese citizens were aboard" the Flight ET 302 which crashed near the town of Bishoftu shortly after taking off.

There were no survivors from an Ethiopian Airlines flight that crashed with 149 passengers and eight crew members aboard, the state broadcaster said on Sunday.

"There are no survivors onboard the flight, which carried passengers from 33 countries," said state-run Ethiopian Broadcasting Corporation, quoting an unidentified source at the airline.

Ethiopia state broadcaster also revealed that passengers from 33 countries were onboard.

Flight ET 302 crashed near the town of Bishoftu, 62 kilometres southeast of the capital Addis Ababa, the airline said, confirming the plane was a Boeing 737-800 MAX.

"It is confirmed it happened 8.44 (am)," said the spokesman who did not give his name.

The prime minister's office sent condolences via Twitter to the families of those lost in the crash.

"The office of the PM, on behalf of government and people of Ethiopia, would like to express it's deepest condolences to the families that have lost their loved ones on Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737 on regular scheduled flight to Nairobi, Kenya this morning," the PM's office said on Twitter.