More than 40 people are feared dead in a plane crash in Taiwan, with witnesses and local media reporting the flight came down in a storm after an aborted landing.

Ten bodies had so far been recovered from the wreckage of the domestic flight, which had 58 people on board, said Taiwan's transport minister.

TransAsia Airways flight GE222 smashed into two houses near Magong airport, on the outlying Penghu island chain, after requesting a second attempt to land there, reported local media.

The twin turboprop plane was flying from the southwestern city of Kaohsiung to the island chain further west and had been delayed due to bad weather, according to the authorities.

Television images showed firefighters working in heavy rain to douse the mangled plane and soldiers on the scene.