Russian plane fighting forest fire disappears

Moscow, July 1: Russia's Ministry for Emergency Situations on Friday said an Ilyushin IL-76 plane disappeared with ten people on board while on a forest fire fighting mission in the far eastern Irkutsk region.

"The plane was putting out a fire in the Kachugski district and it is not known where it went missing," a source from the emergency ministry said.

The aircraft last made contact at 2.45 a.m. on Friday and no malfunctions were reported during that communication.

According to the ministry, the plane has 10 people on board, including five crew members, EFE news reported.

The IL-76 is the world's largest fire-fighter aircraft. It can disperse more than 40 tonnes of water in seven seconds.

--IANS

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