A Russian military ministry freight plane crashed in the Ivanovo region, northeast of Moscow, shortly after taking off from a western Russian airbase.
The airplane, an Ilyushin Il-76, carried 15 people on board, including eight crew members and seven passengers. According to reports in Russian web media, there are no survivors.
The Russian military minister suggested that the crash could have been caused by an engine fire on takeoff. Disturbing footage circulating online show the airliner enveloped in flames just before it crashed, with one engine clearly on fire. The collision scene was marked by a thick cloud of smoke rising from the wreckage.
A popular post on X (previously Twitter) depicts a terrifying image of the airplane, one engine engulfed in flames and descending swiftly toward the ground. The photograph captures the jet just before it crashes, with a heavy plume of smoke rising from the impact site.
In January, a Russian military transport aircraft, especially an Ilyushin-76, crashed in the southern Belgorod region near Ukraine, causing widespread damage. The Russian Ministry of Defence revealed that the jet was transporting 65 seized Ukrainian military members in preparation for a possible prisoner exchange. Following the crash, Ukrainian military intelligence issued a statement accusing Russia of risking the lives of POWs.