A Russian plane called Antonov-28 carrying 18 people to Siberia suddenly vanished from the radar causing panic, but fortunately, all the passengers and the crew were found alive and safe on Saturday, according to the official report by the emergency ministry of Russia.
The plane was making its voyage from Kedrovy to Tomsk, two towns in Siberia, and during its journey, it went missing, and officials swirled with fear of what could have happened to the plane and passengers. Just after the missing, two rescue planes immediately left for search and they found a damaged plane and just near the plane, all the survivors were also found safely in a heavily wooded area. Except for the pilot who fractured his leg, no passenger was believed to be severely injured.
AN-28 plane was found with a damaged nose and landing gear. The local governor issued a statement that said, “we were all praying for a miracle, and thanks to the alertness and professionalism of the pilots, all the passengers and crew are safe”. The plane comprising three crew members and fifteen passengers.
Speaking about what went wrong, a source said, “The crew was forced to make an emergency landing because of a believed failure of both the engines but it is not known to which extent that can be true”. When the emergency landing happened, the plane automatically went off the radar and the team couldn’t reach them again.
The ministry first announced that 19 people went missing in that plane but later revised the number by making it 18. The plane that caused all the hassle was owned and operated by a small airline called Sila, which offers regional flights in Siberia. Following the disappearance of the plane, all flights scheduled on AN-28 were canceled.
This incident came to light only after two weeks of the Antonov-26 incident. An incident where a similar plane crashed into a cliff because of poor visibility conditions, killing all 28 people on board. In another incident, the same type AN-28 plane went missing in a remote forest a few years ago, killing 12 people because of the negligence of both the pilots who were drunk.
After several revisions and improvements by Russian aviation regarding safety and protocol, it seems like they still have a long way to go seeing all these incidents, as miracles are not bound to happen every time.