The aircraft had been diverted because of poor weather before losing contact with air traffic controllers in the west of the country, officials said.

The plane had taken off from the mountainous Andean state of Merida and was destined for the capital, Caracas.

The jetliner is a twin-engine plane run by Santa Barbara, a small Venezuelan airline that covers domestic routes, the authorities said.

The region's rugged terrain made it too difficult to launch a search and rescue operation on Thursday night, Noel Marquez, a civilian defence official said.

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Brazil and Venezuela link trade ... told rescue teams would search for the plane in daylight on Friday.

Merida city is 680 km (422 miles) southwest of Caracas.

(BBC)

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