MOSCOW (Reuters) – A Soviet-era Antonov-24 aircraft, carrying 30 passengers, executed an emergency landing on a frozen river near an airport in Russia’s Far East on Thursday, attributing the incident to pilot error, as stated by transport prosecutors.
The Polar Airlines An-24 safely touched down on the Kolyma River near Zyryanka in the Yakutia region, as confirmed by the prosecutors.
In an official statement, a spokesperson for the Eastern Siberian transport prosecutor revealed, “According to preliminary information, the cause of the aviation incident was an error by the crew in piloting the aircraft.” Prosecutors shared images of the aircraft on the frozen river, while Izvestia newspaper published photos of passengers disembarking.
Polar Airlines acknowledged the incident, stating, “The An-24 aircraft landed outside of the runway of the Zyryanka airport.” Fortunately, no casualties were reported.
