Russia: Light aircraft crashes in Tatarstan with at least 20 on board, seven rescued

A Turbolet aircraft owned by an aero club crashed in the city of Menzelinsk, Tatarstan on Sunday, 10 October, reported Russian news agency TASS citing a source from emergency services. As per the report, the source revealed that a Let-410 plane crashed around 9:11 Moscow time and that it had 20 people on board. The press service of the Russian Ministry for Emergency Situations told the agency that till now, seven people have been rescued. 

The source reportedly said that four more people were rescued by fire and rescue teams. Overall, at least seven people have been rescued. The source added that work is still ongoing. As per the ministry, the fate of the remaining 16 people is still unclear. TASS stated that there were 23 people on board the aircraft that crashed including 21 parachute divers.

Previously, the emergencies services reportedly said that 19 people had been killed in the crash. The source was quoted by the agency as saying, “This information has not been confirmed, access to the plane’s half-ruined fuselage is impeded.” However, a representative of the emergency services told the RIA Novosti news agency that while seven were pulled out alive from the wreckage, the remaining 15 are “without signs of life.”

Seven rescued people were taken to the hospital

As per reports, the plane was a Let L-410 Turbolet is a twin-engine short-range transport aircraft. Images posted by the ministry show the aircraft broken in half with a  severely dented head. RIA Novosti also reported that the local health ministry said that seven survivors are presently in the hospital including one in “very serious condition.”

While the Russian aviation safety standards have improved in recent years, accidents mostly involving old planes in far-flung regions are not uncommon. Last month, an ageing Antonov An-26 transport plane crashed in the Russian far east and killed six people. As per reports, all 28 people on board the twin-engine turboprop died in a crash in Kamchatka in July.

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