The plane that burst into flames while making an emergency landing at a Moscow airport, killing 41 of the 78 people on board, was without radio communications because of a lightning strike, Russian news media on…
MOSCOW — The plane that burst into flames while making an emergency landing at a Moscow airport, killing 41 of the 78 people on board, was without radio communications because of a lightning strike, Russian news media on Monday quoted the pilot as saying.
A flight attendant said there was a sharp flash soon after takeoff Sunday evening from Moscow’s Sheremetyevo Airport as the plane headed to Murmansk.
Some of the 37 survivors were seen on video carrying hand luggage as they plunged down an inflatable slide from the plane’s forward section, raising questions about whether grabbing their baggage might have impeded an evacuation in which every second could separate life from death.
The plane, a Sukhoi SSJ100 operated by the Russian flagship carrier Aeroflot, had taken off from Sheremetyevo but turned back within minutes, asking for an emergency landing. The plane came down hard on the runway and flames and black smoke burst from its underside.
The plane reportedly did not jettison any fuel before the landing, as is common procedure.
