(MENAFN) Officials confirmed on Thursday that all passengers and crew aboard a Russian passenger plane that vanished from radar in the Amur region of the Far East have died. Svetlana Petrenko, spokesperson for Russia’s Investigative Committee, announced on Telegram that a criminal investigation has been launched into the crash under charges related to violations of air traffic regulations.

The Antonov An-24 aircraft was carrying 43 passengers, including five children, and six crew members on a flight from Blagoveshchensk, the regional capital, to the town of Tynda before it disappeared. Amur Governor Vasily Orlov declared three days of mourning starting Friday, expressing sorrow over the loss of all 48 people on board.

Later in the day, the Russian Emergency Situations Ministry reported that the plane’s wreckage was found on a mountainside approximately 16 kilometers (10 miles) from Tynda, along its scheduled route via Khabarovsk and Blagoveshchensk. The cause of the crash remains unknown.

Condolences have been sent to Russia from world leaders. Chinese President Xi Jinping expressed shock and extended deep sympathies to the families of the victims. Malaysian Prime Minister Ibrahim Anwar shared his sorrow and reflected on life’s fragility and global interconnectedness. Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al Sisi also conveyed condolences to Russia and the bereaved families.

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