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Flight recorders found at Su-24 crash site in Chelyabinsk region

Crash had been caused by the loss of the plane's transparent radome

YEKATERINBURG, October 31 (Itar-Tass) — The flight recorders of the crashed Su-24 bomber in the Chelyabinsk region have been found, Col Yarolsav Roshchupkin, an aide to the commander of the Central Military District, told Itar-Tass on Wednesday.

"They are in good condition," Rosshchupkin added.

The Su-24 met with an accident 67 kilometers southwest of the Shagol airfield in the Chelyabinsk region on October 30. The Russian Defense Ministry said the crash had been caused by the loss of the plane's transparent radome.

"After the unsuccessful attempt to make an emergency landing, the pilots decided to take the falling plane away from settlements and ejected," the Ministry said.

A commission comprising representatives of the military prosecutor's office, personnel of the headquarters of the Central Military District and military investigators are working at the scene to ascertain all circumstances of the crash.

The Su-24M was developed by the Sukhoi design bureau in the 1960s. The bomber was added to the Air Force's arsenal in 1985. Its maximum takeoff mass is 40 tons and maximum speed is 2,300 km/h. It has a range of 4,300 kilometers and a maximum altitude of 17,500 meters. It can carry eight tons of ammunition.

The plane was used during the fighting in Afghanistan for attacks from an altitude of 5,500 meters where it was out of reach of portable anti-aircraft missiles.