According to the Russian authorities, the aircraft crashed during landing.
At least seven people were killed today when an Antonov An-12 cargo plane crashed near the city of Irkutsk, in Russia’s far east, said the governor of the Siberian region, Igor Kóbzev.
“Unfortunately, all (the occupants of the aircraft) died. There are between five and seven people,” said Kóbzev quoted by the Interfax agency, which specified that the number of people who were on board the plane is in the phase of check.
The firefighting and rescue units that went to the scene of the accident, near the town of Pivivarija, put down the fire that broke out after the fall of the aircraft, the Ministry of Emergency Situations reported in turn.
According to the Russian authorities, the aircraft crashed during landing.
The Russian Investigation Committee initiated a criminal case to clarify the cause of the incident.
The plane, which covered the route between the Russian cities of Yakutsk and Irkutsk, belonged to the Belarusian airline Grodno.
“We confirmed that the plane crashed near Irkutsk belonged to the Grodno company. We will create a special commission to investigate the circumstances of the event,” they told reporters at the Belarusian Ministry of Transport.
The Belarusian company Grodno, which is engaged in cargo transportation, has in its fleet three An-12 aircraft, one An-32 and eleven An-2s.
Among the occupants of the crashed plane were citizens of Russia, Belarus and Ukraine, according to various sources.
The apparatus, with a capacity to transport up to 21 tons of cargo, had been in service since 1968. (I)
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