A passenger jet that Russia was to deliver to Myanmar crashed during a training flight on Saturday, killing its Russian crew of four and two pilots from the Southeast Asian nation, officials said. The An-148-100E crashed in the Belgorod province, some 600 km (370 miles) south of Moscow, the Emergency Situations Ministry and the state-controlled United Aircraft Corportation said.
The pilots from Myanmar were undergoing training aboard the plane, one of two aircraft being sold to Myanmar's government under a 2010 contract, UAC said. A company spokesman said it was unclear who was at the controls or what might have caused the crash.
The plane had completed 31 test flights since it was built and no safety problems had been discovered, UAC said. The Interfax news agency, citing an unidentified law enforcement official, said seven people were aboard the plane and all were killed. Myanmar's embassy in Moscow declined immediate comment. The An-148-100E is a regional jet that can carry 85 passengers and has a range of 4,400 km (2,730 miles), according to UAC, which said the jet that crashed was fitted out as a passenger plane.
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