Russia plane disasters raise terrorism fears

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By Nelson Alcantara

LOS ANGELES/MOSCOW (eTurbo News) -- Two airlines that
departed from Moscow?s Domodedovo airport have crashed
within minutes of each and shortly after disappearing
from the radar screen on Tuesday, killing all
passengers and crew aboard.

While there are conflicting reports on the details of
the crashes, authorities have identified the crashed
airlines as Volga-Aviaexpress Tu-134 and Siberia
Tu-154.

Both left the airport within 40 minutes of each other
and simultaneously got into trouble at around 11:00
p.m. on Tuesday, raising suspicions that terrorists
may have orchestrated the attacks.  Three minutes
after the Volga-Aviaexpress Tu-134 crashed, air
traffic controllers lost contact with the Siberia
Airlines Tu-154, Reuters reported.

Wreckage of Volga Aviaexpress? Tu-134 airliner, which
carried 35 passengers and seven crew member,  has been
found in the Tula region, about 125 miles south of
Moscow.

The company released a statement claiming that all
necessary security checks had been completed, and that
the flight was being piloted by the Volga-Aviaexpress
director, Yury Baichkin.

A Russian aviation source, who asked not to be
identified, said the Volga Aviaexpress flight sent a
hijack alarm 10 minutes before it disappeared from the
radar.  The airline is yet to issue an official
statement whether a distress alarm was sent.

According to the Emergency Situations Ministry, no one
survived in the Volga Aviaexpress flight crash.

Meanwhile, Siberia Airlines has confirmed that its
flight 1047 bound from Moscow to Sochi, which
disappeared from radar screens over the Rostov region
some 600 miles south of Moscow at approximately 11:00
p.m. on Tuesday, is the same Tu-154 plane whose
wreckage has been found near the southern Russian city
of Rostov-on-Don.

?Despite the fact that details are not clear at the
moment, we can confirm that there were 46 people,
including eight crew members on board the aircraft,?
Siberia Airlines said in a statement.

When asked if he had any knowledge of tourists being
on the flight, Siberia Airlines spokesperson Iliya
Novohatskij, speaking exclusively to eTurbo News,
said, ?It appears there are no foreign names, but we
are not sure at this time.?

There are conflicting reports whether the crashed
Siberia Airline plane had sent any distress signal or
not.  Eyewitnesses claim that the aircraft exploded in
the air before it crashed.  Air traffic controllers
reportedly said no distress signals were received from
the crew before the crash, the Associated Press
reported.

On the other hand, Interfax news agency reported
quoting an unnamed Russian official source saying the
signal was an SOS and no other signals were sent.

Siberia Airlines spokesperson Iliya Novohatskij did
not comment whether or not the downed airliner sent
any distress signal.

Siberia said the Tu-154 liner had its last date of
?heavy? maintenance in August 1993.  The Tu-154 plane
recently underwent maintenance this month, Siberia
said.

With concerns the crashes may be related to terrorism,
the US Homeland Security said it is monitoring the
situation, while a senior US State Department official
stated, "We are obviously concerned by the news. We're
following developments closely and trying to determine
the facts."

"The fact that both planes took off from one airport
and disappeared from radars around the same time can
show it was a planned action," said one aviation
source quoted by Interfax news agency.

President Vladimir Putin ordered the Federal Security
Service, the nation's top intelligence agency, to
conduct an investigation and at the same time
tightened security at airports across the country.

Moscow has been battling Chechen separatists for ten
years.  Just last week, rebels promised more attacks
after launching a major raid in the local capital
Grozny.

However, Chechen separatists have denied any role in
the two plane crashes. Farouq Tubulat, a spokesman for
Chechen separatist leader Aslan Maskhadov, told Al
Jazeera television, "Our government has nothing to do
with terrorist attacks. Our attacks only target the
military. This is part of the Russian propaganda plan
to besmirch the struggle of the Chechen people.? (with
wire inputs)



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