Ivanovo, Russia: A Russian military transport aircraft of the An-22 type crashed on Tuesday, 9 December during a test flight, killing all personnel onboard, according to official sources. The aircraft went down near the village of Ivankovo, in the central Ivanovo Region, northeast of Moscow. The crash occurred during what the Russian Ministry of Defence described as a “post-repair test flight”. The An-22, a heavy-lift turboprop transport aircraft in service with the Russian Armed Forces was reportedly undergoing maintenance before the flight. According to preliminary statements from emergency services and the ministry, there were seven people onboard at the time of the crash. Rescue crews and a commission from the Russian Aerospace Forces have been dispatched to the site. Investigators have already launched a probe, reportedly focused on possible violations of flight-preparation or maintenance protocols. Within hours of the accident, the Russian Investigative Committee confirmed that all 7 members onboard were killed. Witnesses and some media reports claim the An-22 “began to disintegrate mid-air,” with wreckage falling into or near the nearby waterbody, identified as the Uvod Reservoir. Officials earlier emphasised that the crash occurred in an “uninhabited area,” reducing the risk of casualties on the ground. The An-22 is a heavy-lift military transport aircraft developed in the 1960s and used by the Soviet Union, later by Russia, for moving large equipment, oversized cargo or personnel. Over the decades, many An-22s have been retired and as of 2025, the particular aircraft that crashed was reportedly among the last of its kind still in active service. Given its role and significance, the loss of this aircraft is not just a tragic accident but a blow to Russia’s heavy-lift transport capacity. Russia’s older military fleet, especially transport aircraft, has come under increasing strain, a situation exacerbated by increased operational demands. The An-22 crash is the latest in a series of accidents involving Russian military transport aircraft. In 2024, another transport aircraft the Ilyushin Il-76 crashed in the same Ivanovo Region, killing all 15 on board. Some analysts attribute this rise in accidents to a combination of factors: aging aircraft, maintenance challenges under international sanctions, and increased tempo of military flights.
Aircraft Crashes

Russian An-22 Military Transport Plane Crashes In Test Flight, All 7 Onboard Killed

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Ivanovo, Russia: A Russian military transport aircraft of the An-22 type crashed on Tuesday, 9 December during a test flight, […]