- .The Tu-154 model plane went missing just minutes after it took off from Sochi
- .Plane carrying 92 people was travelling to Russia's Hmeimim airbase in Syria
- .64 members of the Alexandrov Ensemble, the army's official musical group, and its conductor Valery Khalilov were on board the plane travelling to Syria
- .The famous military band was on its way to entertain troops at the air base
- .Nine Russian journalists were also on board plane that crashed in the Black Sea
A Syrian-bound Russian military plane carrying 92 people including Red Army Choir members crashed in the Black Sea minutes after taking off from Sochi.
The Tu-154 model plane, which belonged to the Russian defense ministry, crashed shortly after take-off from the southern city of Adler at 5.40am (2.40am GMT). There were no survivors.
Four bodies have been recovered off the coast of the resort city of Sochi, as a frantic search operation continued to find the missing.
Viktor Ozerov, head of the defence affairs committee at the upper house of Russian parliament, said he 'totally excluded' terrorism as a possible cause of the crash because the plane was operated by the military.
A security source indicated the plane had crashed because of a technical malfunction or a pilot error.
A Russian plane has disappeared from radar over Sochi while en route to Syria. The missing plane was a Tu-154 model (pictured)
This is the last picture of the Tu-154 before it crashed into the Black Sea. It was posted by NTV cameraman Evgeny Tolstov
Rescue boats search for the wreckage of the crashed plane near the coastline of Sochi
Fragments of the aircraft were found about one mile from the Black Sea coast of Sochi
Rescue workers push a cart with remains of the military plane which crashed in the Black Sea
A frantic search operation is underway to locate the bodies of those killed in the plane crash
The Russian Defence Ministry said it found debris from the missing Tu-154 in the Black Sea one mile from Sochi
Russian police involved in the rescue operation at a pier outside Sochi today
The plane, a Soviet-era design first introduced in the 1970s, had been on a routine flight to Russia's Hmeimim airbase in western Syria, which has been used to launch air strikes in Moscow's military campaign supporting its ally President Bashar al-Assad in the country's devastating civil war.
Among the 84 passengers on the plane were 64 members of the Alexandrov Ensemble, the army's official musical group internationally known as the Red Army Choir, who were travelling to Syria to participate in New Year celebrations at the airbase.
Nine journalists were among the passengers, with state-run channels Pervy Kanal, NTV and Zvezda saying they each had three staff onboard the flight.
There were also eight soldiers, two civil servants, and an NGO member.
There were also eight crew members on board.
The passenger list released by the Defence Ministry included Yelizaveta Glinka, a prominent charity activist and humanitarian worker who served on the Kremlin human rights council.
Mikhail Fedotov, who heads the council, said Glinka was travelling to Syria to bring medication to a university hospital near the airbase.
Anton Gubankov, the chief of the Directorate of Culture of the Russian Defense Ministry, was also on the list.
Ralina Gilmanova, 22, and her fiancé Mikhail, who were members of the Alexandrov Ensemble, were also on the flight.
They were engaged last year and due to marry soon.
Ralina Gilmanova, 22, and her fiancé Mikhail, who were members of the Alexandrov Ensemble, were on the flight that crashed in the Black Sea
The young couple, both in the choir, were engaged last year and due to marry 'soon'
Among the dead in the crash was Yelizaveta Glinka, a doctor and charity worker who serves on the Kremlin human rights council (pictured with Vladimir Putin)
Channel One sound engineer Alexander Soidov (left) and cameraman Vadim Denisov (right) were on the flight that crashed early this morning
Channel One reporter Dmitry Runkov was also on the flight that crashed in the Black Sea
The plane took off in Sochi about 5.40am local time, and was flying to Syria when it vanished
A Russian military plane crashed in the Black Sea as it made its way to Syria from Sochi airport (pictured) with 92 people onboard
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said President Vladimir Putin was being kept updated on the search operation.
Putin said Russia will observe a national day of mourning tomorrow.
A spokesman for the defence ministry said: 'Fragments of the Tu-154 plane of the Russian defence ministry were found 1.5 kilometres from the Black Sea coast of the city of Sochi at a depth of 50 to 70 metres. No survivors have been spotted.
'Four ships, four helicopters, one aircraft and drones are involved in the search and rescue operation. Six ships and vessels of the Black Sea fleet, remotely operated submersibles and 63 divers have been additionally sent to the crash area. Fifty more divers from other fleets will be brought to the crash area in about an hour,' the ministry added.
Deputy Defence Minister Pavel Popov has flown to Adler to look into the circumstances surrounding the crash.
The plane underwent routine maintenance in September and was flown by an experienced pilot, according to the defence ministry. The aircraft had been in service since 1983 and flown some 7,000 hours since.
A source told the Interfax agency the plane had not sent an SOS signal. An audio recording played on Russian media and said to be of the final conversation between air traffic controllers and the plane showed no sign of any difficulties being faced by the crew.
Russia's Investigative Committee said a criminal probe had been launched to determine whether violations of air transportation safety had led to the crash.
Investigators are currently questioning the technical personnel responsible for preparing the plane for take-off, the committee said.
Russia's official weather forecast agency said conditions near the airport were 'normal, easy,' the Interfax news agency reported.
A former member of the Alexandrov Ensemble lays a flower at the military choir's building in Moscow after 64 members were killed in a plane crash this morning
A man bows his head at the Alexandrov Hall today following news of the plane crash in Sochi
Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said: 'This awful tragedy has claimed the lives of people who were energetic and had plans. Among those killed are journalists, servicemen and musicians of the renowned Alexandrov ensemble. They flew to Syria with a very benevolent and peaceful mission.
'The circumstances of the incident will be thoroughly investigated, and everyone affected by this tragedy will receive the necessary assistance.'
A Russian jet was previously shot down in the Latakia region in November 2015.
In that incident, Su-24 was hit by air-to-air missiles fired by Turkish F-16s over the Syrian region.
Ninety-two people were on board the plane when it vanished from radar, including 64 members of the famous Alexandrov Ensemble military band (pictured, performing in 2015)
Among the 84 passengers on the plane were members of the Alexandrov Ensemble, the army's official musical group internationally known as the Red Army Choir
No comments:
Post a Comment