abcnews.com - Hundreds of emergency workers are combing through a field in deep snow today for wreckage from a Russian passenger jet that crashed shortly after taking off from Moscow Sunday, killing all 71 aboard.
Saratov Airlines flight 703 was flying to the city of Orsk in central Russia but crashed minutes after leaving Moscow’s Domodedovo airport, plunging into the countryside about 40 miles from the city, authorities said.
Russian authorities have confirmed the plane's 65 passengers, including three children, as well as six crew members, died in the crash, which left debris across a field close to the village of Stepanovskoye. A day of mourning has been declared in Orenburg, the region where Orsk is located and where many of the passengers were from.
Russia’s Emergencies Ministry said today rescue operations at the site near Moscow had been called off and that the focus now was on recovering remains and debris from the crash as part of an investigation to determine what caused it. DNA analysis is being conducted to identify the remains of those killed.
Workers have found at least one of the plane’s flight recorders. Russia’s Investigative Committee, which handles serious crimes, said in a statement that the plane’s data recorder, which preserves information like speed, altitude and direction, had been located. The search for the plane’s cockpit recorder is continuing, the committee said.
The cause of the crash still remained unknown. Russian investigators have opened a criminal probe into whether negligence could have led to the crash but they have said they are still examining all possible versions, including weather conditions, technical failure or human error, among others.
Although terrorism has not yet been ruled out, police have suggested it is not being considered a likely cause. ContinueReading
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