A Russian An-26 military transport aircraft has crashed over the Crimean Peninsula, with all 30 people on board feared dead, according to Russian state news agencies citing the Defense Ministry.
The aircraft was carrying 7 crew members and 23 passengers when it lost contact with military authorities at around 6 p.m. on Tuesday during a scheduled flight. It later crashed into a cliff in a mountainous area in the Bakhchisarai district, according to sources cited by Tass and RIA Novosti.
Initial reports indicated 6 crew members, but Russia’s Investigative Committee later confirmed that the total crew stood at 7, bringing the number of people on board to 30. It remains unclear whether there are any survivors.
The crash occurred in Crimea, a territory annexed by Russia from Ukraine in 2014, a move widely considered illegal by the international community.
Authorities have launched a criminal investigation into possible violations of flight safety regulations, while search operations are ongoing in a forested mountainous area.
Russia’s Defense Ministry said a technical malfunction is the most likely cause of the crash, adding that there was no evidence of external interference.
The incident adds to a series of military aviation accidents in Russia in recent years. In December, an An-22 transport aircraft crashed in the Ivanovo region, killing 7 crew members. In October, a MiG-31 fighter jet crashed in the Lipetsk region, while a Tu-22M3 bomber went down in the Irkutsk region in April 2025.
In one of the deadliest such incidents, a Su-34 bomber crashed into a residential building in the city of Yeysk in October 2022, killing 15 people and triggering a large fire.
The latest crash is likely to raise further concerns over the safety of Russia’s military aircraft fleet amid ongoing military operations.
