A Russian military transport aircraft has crashed in the annexed Crimean Peninsula, killing all 29 people on board, according to the Russian Defence Ministry and multiple international news agencies.
The Antonov An-26 military transport plane, a Soviet-era turboprop used for personnel and cargo flights, lost contact with authorities late on Tuesday evening while on a scheduled flight over Crimea, a region Russia annexed from Ukraine in 2014.
Rescue teams later located the wreckage after the aircraft crashed into a cliff, and all six crew members and 23 passengers were confirmed dead.
Initial reports from the Russian defence ministry, as cited by state news agencies, suggest that a technical malfunction may have caused the crash, though investigations are ongoing and official findings have not yet been released.
The incident adds to a series of recent aviation accidents involving Russian military aircraft and raises questions about the safety and maintenance of ageing transport fleets.