Russian Wagner militia boss Yevgeny Prigozhin among the 10 dead in the crash of a private Embraer jet in Tver region

Business jet crashes in Tver Region killing ten

An Embraer EMB-135BJ Legacy 600 business jet registered RA-02795 belonging to the Wagner Group has crashed in the Tver Region, killing all those on board, the Emergencies Ministry has told Russian press agency TASS.

“There were three pilots and seven passengers on board. All of them died,” a source reported to Tass. “The Embraer aeroplane was on the way from Moscow’s Sheremetyevo airport to St. Petersburg. There were three pilots and seven passengers on board. All of them died,” the source said.

Emergency response services have told TASS that four bodies have been found. The plane reportedly caught fire after hitting the ground and burned up. It had been in flight for less than 30 minutes.

Prigozhin listed as passenger of plane crashed in Russia’s Tver region

An investigation of the Embraer plane crash that happened in the Tver Region this evening was initiated

Russia’s Federal Agency for Air Transport has launched an investigation into the crash of the Embraer plane in the Tver Region on Wednesday.

“An investigation into the Embraer plane crash that occurred in the Tver Region this evening has been launched. According to the passenger list, the first and last name of Yevgeny Prigozhin was included in this list,” the agency noted.

TASS has put together some key facts about the crash.

What happened

• An Embraer jet crashed near the Kuzhenkino settlement in the Tver Region north of Moscow.
• The jet was carrying three crew and seven passengers. They were all killed, the Russian Emergency Situations Ministry said.

The plane’s destination

• The list of passengers includes Yevgeny Prigozhin, the Russian aviation agency said.

Official reaction

• The Russian aviation agency has launched an investigation into the crash.
• Law enforcement officers and first responders are working at the scene.
• Tver Region Governor Igor Rudenya has taken the investigation under his personal supervision.

Source: TASS

Comment

In the Western world, many consider the crash as a deliberate attack. Anti-aircraft defence units would have launched missiles at the business jet, knowing that Prigozhin was on board. According to Grey Zone (a Telegram channel close to Prigozhin’s Wagner militia), residents of the area heard two detonations before the crash and saw two vapour trails.

“Revenge“, commented CIA Director William Burns, “is a dish that Putin prefers to serve cold.”

US President Joe Biden said he does not know what happened but is “not surprised. Not much happens in Russia without Putin behind it.”

Polish Foreign Minister Zbigniew Rau remarked “We would have to go to great lengths to find anyone who thinks this is a coincidence. The fact is that political opponents whom Putin considers threatening do not die of natural causes.”