Russian rescue services have located the wreckage of an Angara airlines An-24 plane that disappeared during its approach to Tynda airport in the Amur region, approximately 16km (10 miles) from its destination. The aircraft was carrying 43 passengers and six crew members, including five children, when it vanished from radar shortly after taking off from Blagoveshchensk, near the Chinese border.
Regional governor Vasily Orlov confirmed that "all necessary resources" were mobilized to aid in the search for the plane, which was on the final leg of its journey from Khabarovsk in the far south-east of Russia. Shortly thereafter, a Russian civil aviation helicopter reported sighting the burning fuselage of the aircraft. Amur's civil defense center indicated that the wreckage was discovered on a hillside near Tynda, according to reports from the Tass news agency.
Emergency services are currently en route to the crash site to provide support and begin rescue operations as authorities continue to monitor the situation closely.
