Miracle survival for 41 on stricken plane that broke in two during Arctic crash landing
Around 41 people had a miraculous escape today in an Arctic crash landing after an An-26 aircraft broke in two in appalling weather.
The captain, co-pilot, and one passenger were injured as the plane cracked into two pieces, reportedly around one mile short of Utrenniy airport, situated in an area of the Arcitc known as the ‘end-of-the-world’ . The Utair flight vanished from radar screens as it attempted to land in thick fog and snow at the newly built airport in the far north of Russia.
On board were 36 passengers and five crew. The plane has flown across the Gulf of Ob in the Arctic from Vladimir Putin’s LNG port Sabetta on the Yamal peninsula. Pictures show the damaged plane which came down in a snowfield some 360 miles northwest of the regional capital Salekhard which straddles the Arctic Circle.
Plane broken in two in snow
An airline spokesman said: “An An-26 plane flying from Sabetta to Utrenny made an emergency landing after the weather deteriorated dramatically, amid heavy fog and strong wind. All 36 passengers and five crew members were evacuated to the airport building. One passenger and two crew members were lightly hurt and received medical assistance.”
A report by Interfax made clear that the plane crash-landed more than one mile from the airport. A formal investigation was launched into the reasons for the crash landing. According to Business Insider, Russia’s track record with flight safety hasn’t been great. In February, the Jet Airliner Crash Data Evaluation Centre (JACDEC) revealed that Russian flight safety incidents have more than doubled in the past year, going from 37 cases in 2022 to 81 in 2023.
screenshot on plane on map
Plane crashes have been a regular occurrence since Russia’s two-year offensive in Ukraine. In in January, a Russian military transport aircraft crashed in the Belgorod region near the Ukraine border. It was unclear if the place was brought down by a missile or suffered some technical failure however all 74 people on board were killed, according to Russian authorities.
And in March, a Russian military transport plane with 15 people on board crashed on Tuesday while taking off from an air base in western Russia, the country's Defence Ministry said. It said the Il-76 aircraft with eight crew and seven passengers crashed in the Ivanovo region.
A video broadcast on Russian media showed the aircraft heading down with at least one of its engines on fire. The video showed a dark plume of smoke in the sky as a helicopter circled, the Reuters news agency reported. In a statement, the Defence Military said that an engine fire during take-off was the likely cause of the crash. It said a team of investigators flew to Ivanovo to conduct a probe.