MOSCOW, May 7. /TASS/. The Aeroflot SSJ-100 passenger plane, which crashed on May 5, returned to the airport due to a failure in communication and automated flight control systems, Moscow Sheremetyevo Airport’s press service informs.
According to the press service, the plane took off at 18:02, and at 18:12, the flight commander reported a failure in radio communication to the airport’s dispatch, requesting landing at the airport. At 18:13, the commander reported a failure in communication for the second time, adding that the plane’s automated flight system had malfunctioned as well. At 18:30, the plane landed at the Sheremetyevo tarmac, after which it caught fire.
In the minute following the plane’s landing, the emergency alert was issued and the plane’s emergency slides were deployed in order for the passengers to evacuate. The first two firefighting squads arrived at the crash site at 18:32, while four more approached the plane at 18:33. The airport rescue teams entered the burning plane at 18:35. The fire was fully extinguished at 18:48.
The press service informs that after the emergency alert is issued, the emergency and rescue teams must arrive at the crash site within three minutes. According to the airport, 26 emergency workers, one vehicle of the gas and smoke protection services, as well as 4 ambulances were involved in the rescue operation.
Aeroflot’s Sukhoi Superjet-100 passenger plane (flight SU-1492) with 73 passengers and five crewmembers onboard that was bound for Murmansk caught fire after emergency landing at Sheremetyevo shortly after its takeoff on May 5. A total of 41 people, including two children, were killed in the plane fire.