At Least 41 People Fatally Injured, According To Reports

An Aeroflot Sukhoi Superjet 100 made an emergency crash landing and caught fire Sunday at Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport. At least 41 people were reportedly fatally injured in the accident, while 33 passengers and four crew survived.

CNN reports that the plane was airborne for only about 30 minutes en route to Murmansk, a Russian city in the Arctic circle, before it returned to the Moscow airport. The Russian news agency Interfax said that the plane had suffered a lightning strike causing a "loss of communications" which led to the pilot's decision to turn back.

Video of the accident shows the airliner hitting the runway at speed, bouncing twice, and then bursting into flames as it skidded down the runway. Once the plane came to a stop, passengers could be seen evacuating the burning aircraft.

NBC News reports that the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation said that it is looking into pilot qualifications, equipment failure and weather as it seeks to determine the cause of the accident.

"Aeroflot extends its deepest condolences to the family and loved ones of those who lost their lives on flight SU1492 Moscow-Murmansk. The crew did everything in its power to save passenger lives and provide emergency assistance to those involved," the airline said in a statement posted on its website. "Tragically, they were unable to save all of those aboard."

Video captured inside the plane showed people trying to retrieve their carry-on luggage before evacuating the burning plane, according to NBC news.

The airplane's Flight Data and Cockpit Voice recorders have been recovered from the wreckage. The U.S. State Department confirmed that one American was among those fatally injured in the accident.

The Sukhoi Superjet has been in service since 2011, and was the first passenger aircraft developed in Russia since the fall of the Soviet Union. A Superjet went down in Indonesia in 2012, resulting in the fatal injury of all 45 people on board.

(Image provided by the Investigative Committee of Russia)

FMI: Source report
Source report