Myanmar military plane carrying 116 passengers goes missing, debris found

A military plane carrying at least 116 passengers reportedly went missing on Wednesday evening. 

The debris of the Shaanxi Y-8 plane has reportedly been found in the Andaman Sea. 

The plane went off the radar between the southern city of Myeik and Yangon, according to the office of the army chief.

"Communication was lost suddenly at about 1:35pm (3.05pm Singapore) when it reached about 20 miles (32km) west of Dawei town," the commander-in-chief's office said in a statement.

Reports state that the plane was carrying 105 passengers, and 11 crew members. 

A major search and rescue effort is currently ongoing to search for the plane, which was 20 miles west of Dawei over the Andaman Sea when it vanished.

The passengers are believed to be relatives of servicemen based in the coastal region of the southeast Asian nation.

The reason for the plane's disappearance is believed due to some technical error, as officials told AFP that the weather in the region was fine.

More details are awaited.