Pilot Reported Smoke In Cockpit

A Russian-made Antonov An-12 turboprop may have suffered an onboard fire prior to crashing in the Urals Monday, according to official reports and witness statements.

Agence-France Presse reports the pilot of the large transport aircraft reported problems onboard, and was attempting a return to the airport in Chelyabinsk when the plane (type shown above) went down, killing all nine people onboard.

"The pilot told ground control that there was smoke in the cockpit and he decided to return to the airport. The plane crashed as he was coming in for landing," the spokeswoman, Natalya Andryanova, said on state television. "All the crew members died."

The aircraft impacted about seven miles north of Chelyabinsk. One witness, Vladimir Zonov, told Moscow radio the aircraft came down in a wheat field, and may have been on fire prior to impact.

"We saw a big flame, as if something had exploded," Zonov said.

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev ordered transport officials to investigate the accident. That carries with it the possibility a criminal investigation into a breach of air safety rules.

The An-12 reportedly belonged to charter operator Moskoviya, and was heading from Chelyabinsk to Perm when the accident occurred.

FMI: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moskovia_Airlines