Russian plane crash kills 16 skydivers, injures six as parachuting school hits back

The Russian flying school where 16 skydivers were killed in a plane crash has hit back at suggestions they were doing something dodgy.

The Russian parachuting school, where 16 skydivers were killed in a plane crash yesterday, has hit back at suggestions it’s to blame for the horrific incident.

The L-410 plane was carrying 22 people when it crashed just before 9.30am local time near the town of Menzelinsk in central Russia.

The ministry for the republic of Tatarstan, where the parachuting school is located, said six people had survived the crash.

“Six people were rescued, 16 were taken out without signs of life,” the ministry said.

While the Menzelinsk club organises skydiving experiences for amateurs, it has also hosted championships and training sessions for cosmonauts.

Images published by the ministry showed the aircraft broken in half with a severely dented nose.

The wreckage of the L-410 plane crash. Picture: Russian Emergency Ministry/AFP

According to reports, the plane belonged to the Voluntary Society for Assistance to the Army, Aviation and Navy of Russia, which describes itself as a sports and defence organisation.

The organisation was created in the 1920s and Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin, the first man to travel to space in 1961, trained on its airfields.

In light of the crash, Russian investigators launched a criminal probe into the potential violation of safety rules.

However, the organisation’s head hit back at the probe, saying it was not to blame for the incident.

“We are the best, we are among the top five clubs,” Menzelinsk parachuting club Ravil Nurmekhametov told TASS news agency.

“Cosmonauts train here,” he said.

The club has hosted a number of European and World championships.

Rescuers working at the crash site. Picture: Russia Emergencies Ministry/AFP

TASS cited a source as saying the state Cosmonauts Training Centre, which is responsible for training Russians for space, has suspended its work with the club pending the investigation.

The six survivors of the crash were taken to hospital, the local health ministry said.

Tatarstan head Rustam Minnikhanov, who travelled to the scene, said pilots had reported an engine failure and requested an emergency landing shortly after taking off.

He said the plane tried to avoid a nearby residential area as it approached for landing but “the altitude didn’t allow it”.

The plane hit a parked van with its wing and the aircraft turned over. All the survivors were sitting in the back of the plane, club instructor Oleg Shiporov told TASS news agency.

This isn’t the first time the club has had fatalities.

In 2018, two amateur skydivers died while completing a group free-fall jump at the Menzelinsk club after their parachutes got tangled.

The Czech-built L-410 light aircraft was one of the two planes used by the club, according to its website.

Two L-410 planes suffered fatal accidents in Russia earlier this year, leaving a total of eight people dead.

Russia was notorious for plane accidents but has improved air traffic safety in recent years with major airlines switching from Soviet aircraft to modern jets.

But poor maintenance and lax safety standards still lead to frequent accidents in far-flung regions involving light aircraft, with occasional large-scale tragedies.

Last month, an older model Antonov An-26 plane crashed in Russia’s east, killing six people.

And another Antonov An-26 was involved in a deadly crash in Kamchatka in July, killing all 28 people on board.

Originally published as Russian plane crash kills 16 skydivers, injures six as parachuting school hits back