Russian authorities confirmed on Thursday that all the 49 people aboard the Angara Airlines An-24 crashed in the country's Far Eastern Amur region were killed, and they have launched a probe into the cause of the crash.
The plane, carrying 43 passengers and six crew members, went down when it approached Tynda airport.
The turboprop aircraft, flying from Khabarovsk via Blagoveshchensk to Tynda, disappeared from radar several kilometers from its destination without sending any distress signals.
A search-and-rescue Mi-8 helicopter later spotted the burning wreckage scattered across densely forested mountainous terrain 15 kilometers from Tynda airport.
"Rescuers from the Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations arrived at the crash site, but preliminary examination showed that there were no survivors at the crash site," said Smirnov Igor Viktorovich, director of the main directorate of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of Russia for the Amur Region.
Preliminary investigations suggest poor visibility during landing approach and possible pilot error contributed to the crash.
Local media reported low-hanging clouds at 300 meters altitude, technically above flight minimums but potentially hazardous given Tynda's 1,500-meter surrounding peaks that could cause spatial disorientation.
Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin has established a government commission led by Transport Minister Vitaly Savelyev to investigate the disaster.
Amur region declared three days of mourning as the Interstate Aviation Committee launched a full probe into the Soviet-era aircraft's final moments, including its aborted first landing attempt.
Among the passengers was a Chinese citizen, the Chinese Consulate General in Khabarovsk said. The consulate will send a working group to the crash site on Friday to assist with follow-ups.
All 49 perished in plane crash in Russia's Far East, probe focuses on landing conditions
All 49 perished in plane crash in Russia's Far East, probe focuses on landing conditions
All 49 perished in plane crash in Russia's Far East, probe focuses on landing conditions
The Chinese Embassy in South Africa on Monday held an event in Pretoria, the country's administrative capital, to celebrate the launch of the 2026 China-Africa Year of People-to-People Exchanges.
This year also marks the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and African countries.
Chinese Ambassador to South Africa Wu Peng said that over the past seven decades, under the joint guidance of leaders from both sides, China-Africa people-to-people and cultural exchanges have continued to expand, yielding fruitful outcomes.
Noting that the world is undergoing profound changes unseen in a century, Wu said China and Africa need to uphold fairness and justice, strengthen solidarity and mutual assistance, and enhance exchanges and cooperation more than ever before.
Taking the launch of the China-Africa Year of People-to-people Exchanges as an opportunity, Wu called for upholding the original aspiration of friendship, solidifying the foundation of cooperation, enhancing two-way efforts, and accelerating the building of an all-weather China-Africa community with a shared future for the new era.
Mmapaseka Steve Letsike, South Africa's deputy minister of women, youth, and persons with disabilities, said South Africa and China enjoy strong and historic bonds of friendship as close international cooperation partners in the political, economic, social, technical and multilateral domains.
"The significance of people-to-people is really about how we elevate the people's life to a just and equitable stance that we want to see. We want a better Africa; we want a better world. And that for us is significant," said Letsike.
"Through people-to-people exchanges, we promote mutual understanding, and that is the basis of building mutual trust, building peaceful coexistence. People-to-people exchange is a very important instrument for peace and mutual understanding," said Bongani Maimele, director of international relations with South Africa's National School of Government.
The opening ceremony of the 2026 China-Africa Year of People-to-People Exchanges was held at the African Union headquarters on Jan 8. According to the Chinese Foreign Ministry, the two sides will jointly host nearly 600 cultural and people-to-people exchange activities in 2026 to enhance exchanges and mutual learning between the two civilizations, and promote mutual understanding and connection between the peoples.
Organizing the 2026 China-Africa Year of People-to-People Exchanges is an important consensus reached by leaders from both sides at the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation Beijing Summit in 2024.
Chinese Embassy in South Africa unveils 2026 China-Africa Year of People-to-People Exchanges
