Russian Military Plane Crashes in Crimea

A Russian An-26 military transport plane crashed into a cliff in Crimea on Tuesday, killing all 29 people on board. Russia’s defense ministry reported the incident, attributing the crash to a possible technical malfunction.

Details of the Incident

Communication with the aircraft was lost at approximately 6 p.m. local time while it was on a planned flight over the Crimean peninsula. The peninsula, annexed by Russia from Ukraine in 2014, features mountainous terrain leading to the Black Sea coast.

Search and Recovery Efforts

A search team located the crash site, according to reports from the TASS news agency. The ministry confirmed that six crew members and 23 passengers were killed in the catastrophe, with no mention of any survivors.

Preliminary Investigation Findings

The defense ministry stated that there was no external impact on the aircraft, ruling out involvement of missiles, drones, or birds. “The preliminary cause of the crash is a technical malfunction,” TASS quoted the ministry as saying. A military commission is currently investigating the incident at the crash site.

An-26 Aircraft History

The An-26 is a light tactical military transport aircraft that has been in service since the late 1960s. It is capable of carrying both cargo and up to 40 passengers over short to medium distances.

Past An-26 Accidents

The An-26 model has been involved in several deadly crashes over the past decade. These include:

  • 2022, Ukraine: One person was killed in a crash during a technical flight in the Zaporizhzhia region.
  • 2020, Ukraine: All but one of 27 people on board died in a crash during a training flight.
  • 2020, South Sudan: Eight people, including five Russians, were killed in a crash.
  • 2017, Ivory Coast: Four of 10 people on board died in a crash on landing.