Russia plane crash: Body of military aircraft found in Black Sea
Earlier in the day, rescue teams recovered 11 bodies and 154 'fragments' of bodies.
The body of the crashed Russian military aircraft was found in the Black Sea on Monday, reported AFP. “Divers have found the fuselage of the plane that crashed yesterday [Sunday] in the Black Sea,” a member of the search and rescue team told a Russian news agency.
This comes a day after debris from the missing plane, carrying 91 people, was found after it went off the radar soon following taking off from Sochi. Till now, rescue teams, including 139 divers, have recovered 11 bodies and 154 “fragments” of bodies, said Major General Igor Konashenkov, spokesperson for the Defence Ministry. The bodies have been flown to Moscow to be identified. Russian President Vladimir Putin had ordered an investigation into the crash and also declared Monday a nationwide day of mourning.
The hunt is on to recover the flight recorders, but the Russian transport minister said it would be a challenge to locate them as the devices did not have radio beacons. The flight, which was classified as not being civilian, was heading to Latakia, Syria. Those on board included journalists, military staff, musicians from the Alexandrov Ensemble, and an official army choir of the Russian armed forces.
The Tu-154 plane did not check in with air traffic control at its scheduled time of 5.40 am (local), after taking off at 5.20 am. Search and rescue operations began soon after the flight vanished from the radar. The plane was flying over the Black Sea when it disappeared.