A Russian military transport plane II-76 engine caught fire that led to the aircraft crashing into a forest killing eight crew and seven passenger on board.
The aircraft crashed in the Ivanovo region northeast of Moscow and around 700km from the Ukrainian border on Tuesday at about 1pm Moscow time and the engine caught fire whilst taking off.
“At about 1:00 p.m. Moscow time, an IL-76 military transport aircraft crashed during takeoff for a scheduled flight in the Ivanovo region,” the Russian Defense Ministry was quoted as saying by the state-run TASS news agency.
The defence ministry added, “According to reports from the scene, the cause of the disaster was a fire in one of the engines during takeoff of the aircraft,”
Pro-Putin Telegram channel WarGonzo said, “It is clear that the plane’s engine caught fire. The cause of the accident is being investigated. An investigation team left for the crash site.
“The crew steered the falling plane away from the city. At the cost of their lives, they were able to prevent the tragedy. For pilots, war is everywhere.
BREAKING:
A Russian Il-76 transport plane has crashed near Ivanovo, 200 km north-east of Moscow. 12 Russians were on board.
Covert work by the Ukrainian intelligence services?
A lot of strange things happening in Russia today… pic.twitter.com/OL2tCQxp2l
— Visegrád 24 (@visegrad24) March 12, 2024
“Including in the rear, where the weather is bad and an emergency situation can overtake you in the sky above your home.
“And in this situation, you also need to find the strength to act like a man. The hero pilots proved that they are true Russian officers. We express our sincere condolences to the families and friends of the victims.”
According to SHOT media outlet, “The pilot was very experienced, had many hours of flight time, and his family was proud of him,” said a report. SHOT said that there are fears all 15 on board the Il-76 were killed.
Telegram channel Voevoda Veshaet reported, “It is noticeable that the pilots managed to put out the burning engine, but apparently something went wrong and the plane crashed in a forested area near the Severny airfield.”
