Warning: The following videos are not for sensitive viewers
Officials from the airport in the Russian city of Kazan, where a Boeing 737-500 jetliner crashed on Sunday killing all 50 people on board, have released a shocking video of the accident sourced from a nearby security camera.
The horrifying video, captured at night, shows the large airplane nose-diving into the ground releasing a wave of fire. A Reuters report said that the Tatarstan Airlines flight from Moscow had been trying to abort its landing before it crashed into the runway, killing all 44 passengers and six crew.
“The plane just fell,” Transport Minister Maxim Sokolov told the press. “The plane was vertical, practically vertical.” Sokolov pointed out that official need to examine the data on the recovered black box flight recorders to have a better understanding of what happened on Sunday night.
Alexander Poltinin, a senior regional investigator, told reporters that, “The main versions are pilot error and technical problems, including equipment failure.”
The incident adds more pressure to Russia, which been heavily criticized for poor safety record of its regional airlines. As noted by Slate, two years ago, the Wall Street Journal called Russia “the most dangerous country in which to board an airline”.
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