ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia (AP) — The Ethiopian prime minister's office says an Ethiopian Airlines plane has crashed on its way to Nairobi, with deaths reported.

The office issued a statement Sunday morning saying the Boeing 737 was on a regularly scheduled flight when it crashed. The statement gave no details.

A spokesman for the airline confirmed the plane crashed while heading from Ethiopia's capital, Addis Ababa. It is not yet clear where the crash occurred. The airline has not issued a statement.

The state-owned Ethiopian Airlines calls itself Africa's largest carrier and has ambitions of becoming the gateway to the continent.