The ministry said the Il-76 aircraft with eight crew and seven passengers on board crashed in the Ivanovo region, roughly 435 miles from the border with Ukraine. It is unclear if there are any survivors.
Unverified footage online shows the plane descending to the ground as a plume of black smoke trails behind it, while a fire can be seen around one of the engines. The ministry said an engine fire during takeoff was the likely cause of the crash. The Interfax news agency wrote that the plane crash occurred “during takeoff for a scheduled flight”.
Additional footage showed what appears to be a crash site, with smoke rising from behind a canopy of trees. A helicopter can be seen circling in the background.
It is the second time this year that a Russian Il-76 military transport plane has crashed. Two months ago, another Il-76 crashed, with Moscow saying it was carrying dozens of Ukrainian prisoners of war (PoWs).
The Russian Defence Ministry said a military transport plane with 15 people on board crashed on Tuesday while taking off from an air base in western Russia.
The ministry said the Il-76 aircraft with eight crew and seven passengers on board crashed in the Ivanovo region.
It said in a statement that an engine fire during takeoff was the likely cause of the crash
