An Armenian airliner crashed into the Black Sea off the Russian coast in heavy rain on Wednesday, and all 113 passengers and crew on board were presumed killed, the Russian emergencies ministry said.
The plane, an Airbus A-320, was trying to land at Sochi, a popular seaside holiday spot in southern Russia, in bad weather when it slammed into the sea, reports Trend.
A spokesman for the Russian emergencies ministry said rescue workers had found baggage, life jackets, and body parts, pieces of the shattered plane and a patch of oil floating on the surface of the sea at the crash site.
At least 16 bodies had been found by 0425 GMT.
"According to preliminary information, all people on board are dead," a ministry spokeswoman said.
The plane had been making a short flight of about an hour from the Armenian capital Yerevan, and most of the passengers were Armenian nationals.
"The fragments were found six km (4 miles) from the shore near the airport of Adler. The search operation continues," ministry spokesman Viktor Beltsov said.
Stunned relatives sat quietly waiting for news at Adler airport just outside Sochi, a resort town that became popular with Russians in the Soviet era. Source: Reuters