The Russian Air Force command has grounded the entire fleet of its Antonov An-22 transports and Tupolev Tu-95MS bombers after an An-22 crash yesterday killing all twelve crew on board. The grounding of both types of aircraft suggests the Air Force suspects the cause of the problem was in the engine – both aircraft types share the Kuznetsov NK-12 turboprop. The An-22 remains the largest turboprop powered aircraft in the world. Around 45 remain in service with the Russian Air Force and most are over 40 years old.
The An-22 that crashed yesterday departed from Voronezh airport at 21.00 for the Migalovo airport in Tver region. It lost contact few minutes after departure. The remains of the aircraft were found near the village of Krasny Oktyabr in Tula region, about 100 km from Tula.
