The aircraft is believed to have been on fire when it came down, with the loss of all 27 on board (200 words)

Published: 11/26/2001

The Ministry of Emergency Situations has confirmed that, on 19th November 2001, an Il-18 belonging to Moscow-based IRS-Aero crashed in the Tver Region. The aircraft, which was on a charter flight from the northern Siberian city of Khatanga to Moscow, was reported to have been carrying 18 passengers and 9 crew when it crashed at around 9:24 pm, 20 kilometres from the town of Kalyazin. All on board have died in the crash. The cause of the crash has yet to be established, but eye witnesses said that the aircraft was on fire when it crashed into trees close to the village of Zakharovka and there are also reports of a mid-air explosion. According to sources, the aircraft was produced in 1962 and had been operated by the airline since 1999. The Il-18 entered service in 1959 and around 700 were built by the late 1970s, when production ceased and few now remain in service. Since 1959, the aircraft has had 18 crashes, the latest being a military crash last year.

Article ID: 2924