A Russian military transport aircraft, an Antonov An-26, crashed in the occupied Crimean peninsula on Tuesday evening, resulting in the deaths of all 29 people aboard during what officials described as a routine scheduled flight.
According to Russia's Defence Ministry, contact with the plane was lost around 6:00 p.m. Moscow time on March 31 while it was flying over Crimea. Wreckage was later discovered after the aircraft struck a cliff in a mountainous area near the village of Kuibyshevo in the Bakhchysaray district.
The ministry stated that a preliminary investigation found no signs of external impact, such as from missiles, drones, or other interference, on the wreckage. Officials blamed a “technical malfunction” as the likely cause and said a military commission is investigating the incident at the site.
Reports indicate the aircraft was carrying a mix of crew members and passengers, including possibly military personnel or cadets, though exact details on their identities have not been released. The An-26 is a Soviet-era twin-engine turboprop plane commonly used for military transport duties.
Crimea, which Russia annexed from Ukraine in 2014, has been a frequent target area amid ongoing regional tensions, but Russian authorities have ruled out external causes in this case at this early stage.
The crash marks another loss for Russia's military aviation fleet, which has faced operational challenges with aging aircraft in recent years. No further details on the victims or the specific flight mission were immediately available.
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