Passenger plane with 50 occupants crashes in Russia

A passenger plane carrying nearly 50 people crashed in a remote spot in Russia’s far eastern region of Amur on Thursday, with no immediate signs of survivors, authorities said.

The aircraft, a twin-propeller Antonov-24 operated by Angara Airlines, was headed to the town of Tynda from the city of Blagoveshchensk when it disappeared from radar at around 1:00 pm local time (0400 GMT).

A rescue helicopter later spotted the burning fuselage of the plane on a forested mountain slope about 16 kilometres (10 miles) from Tynda.

Videos published by Russian investigators showed what appeared to be columns of smoke billowing from the wreckage of the plane in a dense, forested area.

Rescuers in the helicopter saw no evidence of survivors, local rescuers said, as the Amur region’s civil defence agency said it was dispatching a ground team to the scene.

“At the moment, 25 people and five units of equipment have been dispatched, and four aircraft with crews are on standby,” it said.

The forest terrain has made getting to the site difficult, a rescuer told the state TASS news agency.

“The main search operations are being conducted from the air,” they said.

Angara Airlines, a small regional carrier based in the Russian city of Irkutsk, made no immediate public comment.

– Plane attempted ‘second landing’ –
The plane was carrying 43 passengers and six crew members on board, according to the region’s governor Vassily Orlov.

Among the passengers were five children, he said.

Russia’s state TASS news agency, citing emergency services, said the plane was carrying 40 passengers and six crew.

The plane crashed while attempting a second approach to Tynda airport, Russia’s Far Eastern Transport Prosecutor’s Office said.

“While approaching Tynda Airport, the aircraft went around for a second landing, after which contact was lost,” it said.

“The circumstances are being investigated,” it said.

It did not make any immediate comment on what caused the crash.

The state TASS news agency reported that the plane was manufactured almost 50 years ago.

“In 2021, the aircraft’s airworthiness certificate was extended until 2036,” it reported, citing a source in aviation services.

AFP was not able to immediately verify this information.

The Antonov-24 is a popular, Soviet-designed twin-propeller plane that first entered into service in 1959.

Russia has taken steps to switch from Soviet aircraft to modern jets in recent years, but ageing light aircraft are still widely used in far-flung regions, with accidents frequent.