A passenger aircraft carrying almost 50 people crashed on Thursday in a remote forested area of Russia’s Amur region, with no immediate signs of survivors, according to local authorities.
The twin-propeller Antonov-24, operated by Angara Airlines, was flying from Blagoveshchensk to the town of Tynda when it disappeared from radar around 1:00 p.m. local time (0400 GMT). Rescue teams later discovered the burning wreckage about 16 kilometres (10 miles) from its intended destination.
Dramatic footage released by Russian investigators showed thick smoke rising from the crash site deep within a mountainous forest. Rescuers arriving by helicopter reported seeing no signs of survivors amid the wreckage.
“The terrain is extremely difficult, which has complicated access to the crash site,” a rescue worker told the TASS news agency. “Most of the search operations are being conducted from the air.”
Emergency services have dispatched 25 personnel and five units of equipment to the area, with four aircraft on standby to assist.
Regional governor Vassily Orlov confirmed that 43 passengers and six crew were on board, including five children. Conflicting reports from emergency sources put the total number of passengers at 40.
Russia’s Far Eastern Transport Prosecutor’s Office said the aircraft had aborted an initial landing and was attempting a second approach to Tynda Airport when contact was lost.
“The circumstances of the crash are currently under investigation,” the office stated, without offering a specific cause for the crash.
The Antonov-24 involved in the incident was reportedly built nearly 50 years ago, though its airworthiness certificate had been extended to 2036, according to TASS.
The Antonov-24 is a Soviet-era twin-engine turboprop that first entered service in 1959. While Russia has been gradually shifting to newer aircraft models, older planes like the An-24 remain in service in remote and hard-to-reach regions — where aviation accidents are more common.
Angara Airlines, a regional carrier based in Irkutsk, has yet to issue a statement on the incident. Investigations by aviation and transport authorities are ongoing.
France24