A passenger aircraft from the Soviet era, operated by Angara Airlines, crashed in Russia’s remote Amur region. All 48 people onboard, including 42 passengers and six crew members, lost their lives. The Antonov An-24 aircraft was lost from radar around 1 p.m. on Thursday, July 24, 2025, as it attempted a second landing at Tynda airport.
The aircraft, based in Siberia, was on a regional flight from Khabarovsk to Blagoveshchensk and Tynda when it lost contact with air traffic controllers. Rescue helicopters later found the burning wreckage on a mountain slope about 16 kilometers (10 miles) from Tynda airport, with no visible survivors.
Regional Governor Vasily Orlov confirmed the deaths of 42 passengers, including five children, and six crew members. Among the passengers was one Chinese national, according to Chinese state media. Orlov declared three days of mourning and ordered flags lowered to half-mast across the Amur region.
Upon impact, the aircraft caught fire, and rescue helicopters found the fuselage engulfed in flames. The dense forest terrain complicated rescue efforts, necessitating over 100 search and rescue personnel to cut a path through the remote, roadless area to access the crash site. The Far Eastern Transport Prosecutor’s Office stated that “the plane was attempting to land for the second time when it crashed, after failing to touch down on its first approach.”
Emergency services reported that the crew issued no distress calls before the crash, and weather conditions at the airport were deemed suitable for flying. However, some reports suggested adverse weather conditions might have contributed to the incident. The aircraft was attempting its second landing approach when contact with air traffic control was lost.
Built in 1976, the nearly 50-year-old aircraft was manufactured during the Soviet era and had previously been operated by Soviet flag carrier Aeroflot before the Soviet Union’s collapse in 1991. The Antonov An-24 model, originally designed in 1957, is considered a reliable workhorse in the Russian aviation industry, known for its capability to operate in harsh Siberian conditions and land on unpaved runways.
Russian investigators opened a criminal case into suspected violations of air traffic and transport rules resulting in multiple deaths through negligence. The Interstate Aviation Committee launched a probe into the crash, while the Russian government formed a special commission, including federal and regional officials, to handle the aftermath. President Vladimir Putin was informed of the incident, according to the Kremlin.
Angara Airlines CEO Sergei Salamanov mentioned that weather conditions were poor at the time of the incident, but noted that the commander decided to proceed with the flight. The Siberia-based carrier operates 10 An-24 aircraft built between 1972 and 1976, according to aviation databases. The airline services airports throughout Siberia and Russia’s Far East from its base in Irkutsk.
This incident marks Russia’s first fatal passenger aviation event since July 2021, when an An-26 crashed near Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, killing all 28 people aboard. The crash highlights ongoing challenges facing Russia’s aviation sector, which has experienced increased mechanical failures since Western sanctions over the Ukraine conflict restricted access to spare parts and foreign aircraft components.
Russian airlines have struggled to replace aging Soviet-era aircraft with modern alternatives due to sanctions that have cut off access to Boeing and Airbus jets. In 2023, several regional airlines requested extensions for An-24 service life, citing difficulties replacing the aging fleet. Mass production of the new Ladoga aircraft, designed to replace the An-24 class, is not scheduled to begin until 2027 at the earliest.
The crashed aircraft had experienced at least two technical malfunctions since 2022, including a generator failure during flight in May 2022 and radio communication problems in March 2025, which forced a return to the parking area. The plane’s airworthiness certificate had been extended until 2036 in 2021, according to aviation databases.
Aviation safety challenges persist in Russia’s remote regions, where extreme weather conditions and difficult terrain make flying particularly hazardous. The An-24 aircraft, nicknamed “flying tractors” by some in the industry, remain essential for connecting isolated communities across Russia’s vast territory, particularly in areas lacking proper runway infrastructure.
A hotline was established for families of crash victims and others affected by the tragedy. Chinese President Xi Jinping sent condolences to Russian President Putin, expressing sympathy for the families of those killed in the crash.
Since the crash, investigators have emphasized altimeter pressure setting miscalculation as a likely factor. The preliminary probe suggests the crew may have flown lower than intended due to confusion between Soviet-era QFE altitude settings and modern QNH references. Authorities recovered the cockpit voice recorder, though the flight data recorder was destroyed in the post-impact fire.
Russia’s federal transport and investigative committees remain active in the inquiry, and a broader audit of Angara Airlines’ safety practices is underway following reports of serious regulatory violations discovered before the crash.