Russia passenger plane crashes killing all 49 persons aboard

All 49 people aboard an Antonio, An-24 passenger plane, that crashed in Russia’s Far East on Thursday were killed, state media reported, citing emergency officials.

The Angara Airlines flight lost contact with ground dispatchers around 1pm local time while flying several kilometers from the airport in the town of Tynda, located in the Amur region.

The plane had originated in Khabarovsk, made a stop in Blagoveshchensk and was en route to Tynda. Among those on board were six crew members.

Emergency officials said the aircraft did not issue a distress signal or report any technical issues before it disappeared from radar.

Rescue teams later located the charred wreckage approximately 16 kilometers (10 miles) from Tynda, a town of less than 30,000 people.

“According to preliminary information, all on board were killed. So far, the rescue helicopter has been unable to land at the crash site — it’s a remote, mountainous area on a slope. A fire is currently burning at the scene,” an unnamed emergency official told the state-run TASS news agency.

The Moscow Times reports that Amur region Governor Vasily Orlov confirmed that the aircraft’s fuselage had been found but did not comment on casualties.

Transportation investigators announced that they had launched a criminal probe into the crash, treating it as a possible violation of air safety rules.

The An-24, a Soviet-era twin turboprop aircraft, was more than 50 years old, according to civil aviation authorities cited by TASS.

The aircraft received a renewed airworthiness certificate in 2021, which allowed it to operate through 2036.