Choir among the victims
A MILITARY choir were among 92 people feared dead after a plane crashed into the Black Sea yesterday.
The Tu-154 jet belonging to the Russian defence ministry vanished from radar two minutes after taking off from Sochi at 5.25am local time.
Weather conditions were good and last night investigators said they couldn’t rule out terrorism.
The plane was carrying 64 members of the Alexandrov Ensemble, or Red Army Choir, who were due to perform for troops at a Russian air base in Latakia, Syria.
The other victims were the eight crew members, eight soldiers, nine journalists, two civil servants and a charity worker.
Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said it was an “awful tragedy”, adding: “They flew to Syria with a very benevolent and peaceful mission.”
President Vladimir Putin declared today a day of national mourning.
The flight had taken off from Moscow and landed in Sochi to refuel.
Ships, helicopters and drones were searching the crash area but there was no indication anyone survived as rescue crews pulled debris and bodies from the water.
A Russian defence ministry spokesman said fragments of the plane were found nearly a mile from the coast at a depth of 160 to 230ft.
The Alexandrov Ensemble are the official choir of the Russian army and include a band and a dance company.
They have toured the world since 1928, performing Russian folk songs and patriotic music, and have been dubbed “Russia’s singing weapon”.