An Angara Airlines plane has gone missing over Russia’s remote Amur region. The aircraft, which is a Russian-made Antonov An-24, was carrying at least 49 people when it disappeared during its flight, news agency AP quoted regional Governor Vasily Orlov as saying.
The wreckage of the plane has been found in Russia’s Far East, the news agency further reported, citing local emergency services. Russia’s Emergency Situations Ministry has confirmed that they found the “burning fuselage” of the plane.
No survivors in plane crash
According to Russian news agency TASS, there are no survivors in the plane crash. The possible reason behind this crash is ‘crew error during landing’, TASS further reported.
According to a report by Reuters, no distress signal was received before the plane lost contact. It was en route to Tynda, a town in the Amur region bordering China, when it dropped off radar screens.
Search operations underway
Search and rescue operations are currently underway, though no signals have been detected so far. Authorities say the taiga-dense boreal forest covering much of the area is making the search effort challenging, as per a report by Russia Today.
Regional governor Vasily Orlov said that there were around 43 passengers, including five children, and six crew members on board.
“All necessary forces and means have been deployed to search for the plane,” he wrote on Telegram.
The Antonov An-24, developed in the 1950s, is widely used in Russia for both cargo and passenger transport. More than 1,000 units of the aircraft were produced.