The key facts

  • The Azimut plane was flying from Yerevan to Mineralnye Vody and issued a distress signal shortly after takeoff
  • According to preliminary data, there are about 108 people on board
  • The cause of the signal and information about the landing have not yet been reported

Distress signal after takeoff

A passenger plane of the Russian airline Azimut, operating a flight from Yerevan to Mineralnye Vody, issued a distress signal almost immediately after takeoff. According to preliminary data, there may be about 108 people on board; this information was reported by the Telegram channel Baza, as Life.ru writes.

Return to the departure airport

The crew began turning the aircraft back toward the departure airport. The reasons for issuing the distress signal are currently unknown. There is no information yet on whether the plane has landed or on the condition of the people on board.

A similar incident in July

This is not the first such case involving this airline's planes on this route: as Life.ru previously reported, in July an Azimut plane flying from Istanbul to Mineralnye Vody also issued a distress signal and returned to its departure airport. The cause then was a technical malfunction, and the aircraft landed safely in Turkey. Whether these two episodes are connected does not follow from the available data — the causes of the current incident have not yet been named.