Russian plane carrying 71 passengers crashes outside Moscow
Moscow, Feb 11 (IBNS): After leaving Moscow's Domodedovo airport, a Russian passenger plane crashed on Sunday, media reports said.
The plane had 71 passengers onboard when the mishap occurred.
"Fragments of the An-148 plane and several bodies have been found near the village of Stepanovskoye," a ministry spokesman told TASS news agency of the country.
The Saratov Airlines jet vanished after take-off from the airport.
Russia’s Air Transport Agency (Rosaviatsiya) was quoted as saying in a statement reported by TASS: " The An-148 passenger plane of the Saratov Airlines [flight 730 from Moscow to Orsk] took off from the Domodedovo airport at 14:21 Moscow time. According to preliminary data, there were 65 passengers and six crew members aboard the plane. Radio contact with the plane was lost several minutes after the takeoff and the plane went out of the radars. In happened in Moscow region’s Ramensky district."
The exact cause of the crash was not known.
The passengers are believed to have died.
President Vladimir Putin has offered his condolences to the families of the passengers and crew present in the plane.
He has ordered an investigation into the incident.
Rescuers have been reportedly sent to the spot of the mishap.
Saratov Airlines flight #6W703 has crashed about 5-6 minutes after take off from Domodedovo Airport in Moscow.
— Flightradar24 (@flightradar24) February 11, 2018
During the last seconds before it crashed the aircraft was falling with up to 22,000 feet per minute.
The aircraft involved was a 7 year old Antonov An-148. pic.twitter.com/0ENfhyI9Ts
"Saratov Airlines flight #6W703 has crashed about 5-6 minutes after take off from Domodedovo Airport in Moscow. During the last seconds before it crashed the aircraft was falling with up to 22,000 feet per minute.The aircraft involved was a 7 year old Antonov An-148," Flight-tracking site Flightradar24 tweeted.
