A Russian military transport aircraft prototype has crashed during a test flight outside Moscow, news agencies reported Tuesday and the Rostec state defense conglomerate confirmed.
Videos of the alleged incident shared on social media showed the aircraft tipping to one side and falling to the ground after its right engine caught fire during landing.
Three people were on board the Ilyushin Il-112V prototype including Hero of Russia Nikolai Kuimov, according to the state-run TASS news agency. They are believed to have died in the accident.
The Rostec defense conglomerate confirmed the accident to The Moscow Times and said it was assembling an internal commission to investigate the incident.
Rostec added that the aircraft was experimental and still in the testing stages.
Citing its sources, the state-run RIA Novosti news agency said engine fire was the preliminary cause of the crash at the Kubinka airbase in the Moscow region.
TASS reported that pilot error and equipment failure are also among the causes being investigated.
The light military transport aircraft is designed for transporting and parachuting light weaponry and equipment, cargo and military personnel.
Ilyushin’s website states that the Il-112V is capable of auto-landing approaches to certain aerodromes and manual landing approaches to poorly equipped aerodromes.
Deputy Prime Minister Yury Borisov said last month that Russia was moving to resolve issues with the Il-112V, including its heavyweight, according to RIA Novosti.
