Plane bound for Russia crashes in Afghanistan: Russian aviation authority

MOSCOW -- The passenger plane that crashed in Afghanistan on Saturday night was registered in Russia and was heading for Russia's Zhukovsky airport, said Russia's Federal Air Transport Agency (Rosaviatsia) on Sunday.

The plane was en route from India to Uzbekistan, with Russia's Zhukovsky airport in Moscow as its destination. Preliminary information showed it was carrying six people including four crew members, said Rosaviatsia.

The Russian aviation watchdog said the search for the plane is underway, and it is in contact with the aviation authorities of Tajikistan and Afghanistan.

Plane crashes in Afghanistan, rescue underway in mountains

KABUL -- A passenger plane heading toward Russia has crashed in northern Afghanistan's Badakhshan province, Afghan television channel TOLOnews quoted an official as saying on Sunday.

The plane crashed in the mountainous Topkhana area of Kuran-wa-Munjan district on Saturday evening, "obviously due to a technical problem," said Badakhshan's provincial director for information and culture Zabihullah Amiri.

A team has been sent to the area to spot the crashed aircraft, the official added.

Abdul Wahid Rayan, spokesman for Afghanistan's Ministry of Information and Culture, said on social media that the small aircraft was traveling to Moscow when it appeared to have an engine problem.

Russian aviation authorities have reportedly confirmed that a plane with four crew members and two passengers on board disappeared from a radar screen in Afghanistan's airspace on Saturday evening.

In Badakhshan, harsh winter weather and mountainous landscapes make it difficult for rescuers to reach the crash site.