A nuclear-capable bomber crashed in Arctic Russia amid a snowstorm, Defense Ministry says
The plane crashed while attempting to land in high winds during a snowstorm at an airbase near Olenegorsk.
By
Reuters
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January 23, 2019
2428
MOSCOW — A nuclear-capable Tupolev-22M3 supersonic bomber crashed while trying to land in a snowstorm on Tuesday in Russia’s far north, the Defense Ministry said, saying the aircraft did not have any weapons on board.
Two of the plane’s four-man crew died in the crash and a third later died of his wounds in hospital, Russian news agencies reported. The fourth crew member survived.
The accident happened in Russia’s Murmansk region when the Soviet-era plane tried to land at an airbase near the city of Olenegorsk in a fierce snowstorm and amid high winds.
The plane broke up on the tarmac and caught fire.
The Defense Ministry said it was investigating all possibilities, including a technical fault.
Reporting by Andrew Osborn.