At least killed 76 in Russian plane crash in Belgorod including Ukrainian POWs
Local governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said investigators and emergency workers were already on the scene
January 24, 2024
- Plane had six crew members, three other people onboard.
- Aircraft designed to airlift troops, cargo, military equipment.
- There was no immediate information on the cause
At least 76 people have been killed after a Russian Ilyushin-76 military transport plane crashed in southern Belgorod, bordering Ukraine, on Wednesday, the Russian Ministry of Defence said on Wednesday.
Russian news agency Ria Novosti reported that those on board included Ukrainian prisoners of war (POWs) to be exchanged in a swap.
Local governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said that an unspecified "incident" had occurred in the region's Korochansky district, northeast of Belgorod city and that he was going to inspect the site, Reuters reported.
He said investigators and emergency workers were already on the scene.
A video shared on the Telegram messenger app a channel linked to Russian security services, showed a large aircraft falling towards the ground and exploding in a fireball.
RIA cited the defence ministry as saying that the plane was carrying 65 Ukrainian prisoners of war, alongside six crew members and three other people, when it crashed.
There was no immediate information on the cause.
The Il-76 is a military transport aircraft designed to airlift troops, cargo, military equipment and weapons. It has a normal crew of five people and can carry up to 90 passengers.
Belgorod region, which borders Ukraine, has come under frequent attacks from Ukraine in recent months, including a December missile strike which killed 25 people.
Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov, quoted in TASS news agency said that he could not yet comment on reports about the crash. "I can't comment on the issue, it's fairly new, fresh information, we will deal with it now."
TASS also reported that, according to the head of the State Duma’s Defense Committee, Andrey Kartapolov, said that the plane could have been shot down by the Ukrainian Armed Forces using missiles of the US Patriot surface-to-air missile system or the German IRIS-T.
Head of the State Duma’s Committee on International Affairs and LDPR leader Leonid Slutsky said this is "not the first time the Ukrainian military has hit its own" and added that the authorities in Washington and Brussels were equally responsible for the "shooting of prisoners of war in the air."
