An Ilyushin Il-76 plane owned by Air Rescue Company of the Russian Ministry for Emergency Situations with 10 crew members aboard took off from an airfield in Usolye District, Irkutsk Region at 10:19 AM, local time on 1 July 2016 to extinguish a wildfire in Kachug District. The crew failed to get in contact on fixed time – 11:30 AM. According to preliminary information, the most likely reason for that could be an air crash. The Eastern Siberian Transport Office of the Investigative Committee has opened a criminal investigation into a crime under Article 263 of the RF Penal Code (violation of safety standards for traffic and operation of air transport).

At the moment a set of investigative operations are underway to find out the causes and details of the incident. The investigators are working in cooperation with the services of the Irkutsk Region Directorate of the Emergency Ministry. An investigative team of the most experienced investigators and criminalists has been set up to work at the crash scene after the aircraft is found. Employees of the Criminalistics Directorate of the Investigative Committee are providing practical assistance.

The two preliminary versions of the crash are technical failure and pilot’s error. SAR operations are ongoing in the region. The investigation will be continued.