Russian news agencies say a Russian military cargo plane crashed near the western city of Ryazan late Thursday, killing four people and injuring five others.
A statement from the Russian Defense Ministry said the Il-76 military transport aircraft was forced to make a “hard landing” after an engine malfunction during a training flight with no cargo on board. The plane went down in a field adjacent to residential buildings.
Russia’s RIA Novosti news service quoted a statement from local government officials saying four people died and five others were injured and being treated in “medical institutions” in Ryazan.
While the defense ministry statement described the aircraft as making “a hard landing,” pictures and video from scene posted on the Russian news service TASS website show smoldering wreckage and the plane in several pieces.
Media reports quote local officials as saying the plane also struck power lines as it went down, leaving parts of the city without electricity Friday.
The Il-76 is a Soviet-era turbojet aircraft used for cargo transport by the Russian military and in civil aviation.
Some information for this report was provided by the Associated Press and Reuters.
