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A passenger plane crashed into a remote hillside near Pakistan's capital Wednesday, killing all 152 people on board, in the deadliest aviation accident in the country.

Authorities say the Airblue jet was traveling from the southern port city of Karachi to Islamabad when it crashed while trying to land in rainy and cloudy conditions.

Rescue teams and army helicopters were sent to the heavily-wooded area of Margalla Hills, but search and recovery efforts were hampered by difficult terrain and weather conditions.

Pakistan's Federal Information Minister Qamar Zaman Kaira says DNA tests will be needed to identify most of the 115 bodies that have so far been recovered. Two American citizens were killed in the crash. Six crew members were among the 152 people on board the flight.

Kaira said authorities were still looking for the plane's "black box" data recorder to determine why the plane went down.

Airblue spokesman Raheel Ahmad said the plane had no known technical issues and the pilots did not send any emergency signals.

Witnesses in Islamabad say they saw the plane flying very low just before the crash.

Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani expressed grief over the "tragic incident" and the government declared Thursday a national day of mourning.

U.S. President Barack Obama issued a statement offering condolences to victims' families. He said the American people stand with the people of Pakistan "in this moment of tragedy."

An Airblue spokesman says this was the first crash for the domestic and international private airline which began operations in 2004. Airblue is the second largest airline in the country after the state-run Pakistan International Airlines. (voa)