MOSCOW (Sputnik) – Vladimir Martynenko, a snow clearance mechanic at Moscow’s Vnukovo International Airport, apparently was unable to hear directions over the radio when clearing snow from the airport’s runway when de Margerie’s private jet slammed into the snowplow he was driving.
“Martynenko has pled his full guilt, noting that because of faulty radio contact he did not hear the signal and began returning [back to the tarmac] and crossed the runway,” Karabanov told RIA Novosti.
According to the Russian Investigative Committee, Martynenko was operating the snowplow in violation of the runway rules due to the absence of oversight by senior shift engineer Vladimir Ledenev. Violations on the part of air-traffic controllers on duty are also among the causes of the crash.
