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Wow.
Karel Rachunek, Ruslan Salei, Karlis Skrastins, Pavol Demitra and Josef Vasicek all killed.
Karel Rachunek, Ruslan Salei, Karlis Skrastins, Pavol Demitra and Josef Vasicek all killed.
Russia plane crash kills 36, agencies report
Moscow (CNN) -- A plane carrying Russian, German and Swedish hockey players crashed as it took off from Russia's Yaroslavl airport Wednesday afternoon, killing 36 people, Russian news agencies reported.
The Yak-42 aircraft was taking members of a professional hockey team to Minsk, the Belarusian capital, the state-run RIA Novosti news agency reported.
The Lokomotiv Yaroslavl team -- which included players from Germany, Slovakia and Sweden -- was scheduled to play a match in the new Kontinental Hockey League, RIA Novosti said.
Lokomotiv Yaroslavl had a number of players with ties to the National Hockey League, according to the NHL website.
They included defensemen Karel Rachunek, Ruslan Salei and Karlis Skrastins, as well as forwards Pavol Demitra and Josef Vasicek, the NHL website said, as well the team's head coach, Brad McCrimmon, who had played and coached in the NHL.
A Russian Emergency Situations Ministry representative said there were 45 people on the plane, including eight crew members. It had earlier said 37 people were aboard.
The Russian Federal Aviation Agency said a number of people had survived the crash, but their condition was critical.
A Russian Kontinental Hockey League ice hockey match between Salavat Yulayev and Atlant was halted in the city of Ufa after news of the crash came through.
Players from both teams and spectators observed a moment of silence before leaving the stadium. Many in the audience were crying, Russian state TV footage showed.
An aviation agency spokesman, Sergei Izvolsky, told CNN the crash occurred around 4 p.m. (8 a.m. ET) during take-off because the plane couldn't reach a safe altitude fast enough.
The aircraft collided with the antenna of the airport beacon, fell to the ground and broke into several pieces and caught fire, Izvolsky said.
It was a charter flight with a plane operated by Yak-Service Airlines, he said. Yaroslavl is about 155 miles (250 km) northeast of the capital, Moscow.
Russia's President Dmitry Medvedev instructed the country's Investigative Committee and other law enforcement agencies to probe the crash.
Prime Minister Vladimir Putin also asked Transport Minister Igor Levitin to go to the scene to organize efforts to examine the cause of the crash, the press office of the Russian prime minister reported.
The crash came as an international political forum opened in Yaroslavl, with participants expected to include Medvedev, the prime ministers of France, Spain and Italy and South Korean President Lee Myung-bak.
The politicians, as well as business leaders, public figures and experts from 32 countries, are scheduled to discuss global issues such as poverty and problems of urban development.
Medvedev is due to make a keynote political speech Thursday.
Moscow (CNN) -- A plane carrying Russian, German and Swedish hockey players crashed as it took off from Russia's Yaroslavl airport Wednesday afternoon, killing 36 people, Russian news agencies reported.
The Yak-42 aircraft was taking members of a professional hockey team to Minsk, the Belarusian capital, the state-run RIA Novosti news agency reported.
The Lokomotiv Yaroslavl team -- which included players from Germany, Slovakia and Sweden -- was scheduled to play a match in the new Kontinental Hockey League, RIA Novosti said.
Lokomotiv Yaroslavl had a number of players with ties to the National Hockey League, according to the NHL website.
They included defensemen Karel Rachunek, Ruslan Salei and Karlis Skrastins, as well as forwards Pavol Demitra and Josef Vasicek, the NHL website said, as well the team's head coach, Brad McCrimmon, who had played and coached in the NHL.
A Russian Emergency Situations Ministry representative said there were 45 people on the plane, including eight crew members. It had earlier said 37 people were aboard.
The Russian Federal Aviation Agency said a number of people had survived the crash, but their condition was critical.
A Russian Kontinental Hockey League ice hockey match between Salavat Yulayev and Atlant was halted in the city of Ufa after news of the crash came through.
Players from both teams and spectators observed a moment of silence before leaving the stadium. Many in the audience were crying, Russian state TV footage showed.
An aviation agency spokesman, Sergei Izvolsky, told CNN the crash occurred around 4 p.m. (8 a.m. ET) during take-off because the plane couldn't reach a safe altitude fast enough.
The aircraft collided with the antenna of the airport beacon, fell to the ground and broke into several pieces and caught fire, Izvolsky said.
It was a charter flight with a plane operated by Yak-Service Airlines, he said. Yaroslavl is about 155 miles (250 km) northeast of the capital, Moscow.
Russia's President Dmitry Medvedev instructed the country's Investigative Committee and other law enforcement agencies to probe the crash.
Prime Minister Vladimir Putin also asked Transport Minister Igor Levitin to go to the scene to organize efforts to examine the cause of the crash, the press office of the Russian prime minister reported.
The crash came as an international political forum opened in Yaroslavl, with participants expected to include Medvedev, the prime ministers of France, Spain and Italy and South Korean President Lee Myung-bak.
The politicians, as well as business leaders, public figures and experts from 32 countries, are scheduled to discuss global issues such as poverty and problems of urban development.
Medvedev is due to make a keynote political speech Thursday.
that's sad.
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