Russian Plane Crash: A Russian airliner crashed on Sunday, February 12, 2018 near Domodedovo Airport, Russia. The plane apparently crashed in a field shortly after takeoff. The An-148 aircraft was part of a Russian airline known as Saratov Airlines.
Domodedovo Airport is one of three airports used by Moscow and is located 26 miles southeast of the city center. It is the second busiest airport in Russia. The An-148 is built in the Ukraine and is what is known as a regional jet. It can carry approximately 75 passengers.
The crash was caught on a surveillance camera. You can see the video at: http://www.foxnews.com/world/2018/02/11/surveillance-footage-captures-moment-russian-plane-crashed-killing-71.html. Apparently the pilots maneuvered the aircraft in order to avoid populated areas and crashed into an abandoned field. It seems that all 71 souls on board perished in the crash.
The maneuvering of the aircraft to avoid populated areas is a hallmark of professional piloting. I know from many personal briefings while in the Air Force that multiple lives on the ground have been saved by heroic pilot efforts to avoid hitting structures on the ground. The most personal to me was the crash of the Thunder Hawk KC-135 aerial demonstration team in 1987. Friends and colleagues aboard that aircraft maneuvered onto a field in order to avoid hitting the Base Exchange with dozens of individuals inside (http://www.historylink.org/File/8871).
The crash snaps an unprecedented safety record by the airline industry. There were no passenger deaths in accidents WORLDWIDE in the airline industry in 2017 (a record). http://www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-and-advice/air-safety-2017-best-year-safest-airline-passengers-worldwide-to70-civil-aviation-review-a8130796.html). The last crash had been in the Fall of 2016 when a LaMia flight crashed in Columbia with 71 perishing. The last US airline passenger fatality was in February 2009, when a Colgan Air Flight crashed short of the runway in New York killing 49 onboard.
This airline safety is attributed to maintenance professionals keeping aircraft in good working order with regular maintenance and inspections. Furthermore, it traces its roots to CRM (Crew Resource Management) training which began in the 1970s after several high profile airline crashes. (https://books.google.com/books/about/Controlling_Pilot_Error_Controlled_Fligh.html?id=Cm9TAAAAMAAJ)
Apparently the black boxes have been recovered from the Russian plane crash, which hopefully allow investigators to identify the cause of the accident to help prevent further accidents. Please pray for the victims’ families.