In this photo provided by vk.com/rostovnadonu, Russian emergency fire trucks are seen among the wreckage of a crashed plane at the Rostov-on-Don airport, about 950 kilometers (600 miles) south of Moscow, Russia Saturday, March 19, 2016. A Dubai airliner crashed and caught fire early Saturday while landing in strong winds in the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don, officials said. (vk.com/rostovnadonu group via AP)
Russia’s Southern Regional Emergency Center has just reported the crash of a Flydubai Boeing 737 jet at the Rostov-on-Don airport after traveling from Dubai which killed all those on board numbering about 62.
Officials believe bad weather, which kept the plane from reattempting landing for more than two hours, likely caused the crash that happened on Saturday. The Ministry of Emergency Situations said the plane’s pilot circled the airport, waiting for the weather to clear before making a second attempt to land, but the aircraft’s tail had clipped the runway.
State-run Ria Novosti news agency reports that the Russian Investigative Committee has launched an investigation, and is considering three potential causes. State media reported winds of 97 kph (60 mph) at the time of the crash.
The crash site is 800 feet (243 meters) from the airport runway, it said, adding that investigators had ruled out terrorism as a cause of the crash at this stage and weather conditions were most-likely responsible. About 700 people are involved in the rescue operation.
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