MOSCOW (Sputnik) — The Kremlin has expressed deep condolences to families of crew members of the Il-76 jet that crashed while on a fire-fighting mission near the Russian city of Irkutsk, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Wednesday.
"The Kremlin expresses its deepest condolences to the relatives and friends of the Emergency Ministry's pilots who died during a fire-fighting [mission] near Irkutsk, today is their funeral. They are true heroes, so the Kremlin is grieving together with all the relatives and loved ones of these pilots," Peskov said.
Condolences to families of perished heroes. Long live the memory of @MchsRussia IL-76 pilots who died on duty https://t.co/XWDJgdUd4d
— Dmitry Rogozin (@DRogozin) 5 июля 2016 г.
The plane went missing last Friday after failing to make scheduled contact with rescuers. All ten crew members died in the crash. The last of the bodies were pulled from the charred wreckage on Monday. The black boxes received thermal damage.
A source at emergency services told RIA Novosti that nine Il-76 crew members would be buried either in Moscow or in the Moscow Region, the remaining pilot's body would be sent to Volgograd.
