Pulkovo Airlines Flight 612 crash

Russian Pulkovo Airlines Flight 612, carrying 160 passengers and 10 crew members, crashes in Ukraine during transit, leaving no survivors.

Pulkovo Airlines Flight 612 was a Russian Tupolev Tu-154M airliner (registration: RA-85185), flight number 612, operated by Pulkovo Airlines. On August 22, 2006, while en route from Vityazevo Airport (Anapa) to Pulkovo Airport (St. Petersburg), the flight crashed near the Russian border over eastern Ukraine.
"On Tuesday, at 15:37 (Moscow Time), a Tu-154 airliner of the St. Petersburg-based Pulkovo Airlines ... sent an SOS signal and disappeared from radars at 15:39 (Moscow Time)," the source said. "Preliminary data suggests that the plane crashed 45 kilometers (30 miles) north of Donetsk."[1]. Later it was determined that the plane crashed near the village of Sukha Balka (48°19′N 37°45′E).[2]
"At an altitude of 11,500 metres (37,000 feet), the aircraft sent three SOS signals, dropped sharply in altitude and sent another SOS at 3,000 metres (9,000 feet)," said Anatoli Samoshin, vice Flight Operations Director at Pulkovo Airlines. There were no other communications.
Approximately 260 rescue personnel arrived at the scene which has been blocked off by the authorities as the field of debris and bodies is about 400 meters in length. On Wednesday, emergency service personnel concluded their search for bodies, confirming that 170 people perished in the accident.[3] Due to the extensive crash forces and post-accident fires, rescuers believe it will be very difficult to identify the majority of the victims on site. The aircraft crashed in a swampy area, breaking up on impact. The search for black boxes, which was interrupted for the night, concluded in the morning when both recorders were found. The flight recorders will be transported to Moscow for analysis.
The crash was witnessed by a local farmer and a young couple seeking shelter from the rain. They told reporters that they saw the aircraft falling out of the sky and that it burst into flames upon hitting the ground. They could see people in a number of seats that were thrown out of the aircraft on impact, but none showed any signs of life. A man living in a nearby village was able to make a short video of the crash with his cell phone.[4]
On their corporate website,[1] Pulkovo Airlines posted a short statement and passengers list confirming that there were 160 passengers and 10 crew members aboard the aircraft. 45 were children under 12 years old. Earlier reports by the media and by the airline indicated that 159 passengers were on the flight, 39 children under 12 and six infants under 2 years of age.
The Russian Ministry of Extraordinary Situations published a list of passengers travelling on flight 612, which can be found on its website.[2] Out of 159 people, 20 were travelling to Norilsk through St. Petersburg, and three to Murmansk. Most of the passengers were families travelling back from vacations with children.