Passenger plane with 17 on board goes missing in Russia

By Elena Teslova

MOSCOW (AA) – A passenger plane with 17 people on board went missing over central Russia on Friday.

A distress signal was received from the An-28 aircraft before it disappeared from radars over the Tomsk region, Russia’s Emergency Ministry said in a statement.

The missing plane was heading from the city of Kedrovy to Tomsk, according to Siberian Light Aviation, the company that owns the aircraft.

The plane was found to be fit to fly before departure and the crew did not report any malfunctions during the flight, it added.

Four helicopters and several rescue teams are involved in search efforts, which are complicated as dense forests obstruct visibility in the region.

Earlier this month, an An-26 plane crashed in Russia’s Far East Kamchatka region, killing all six crew members and 23 passengers on board.