MOSCOW (Sputnik) — The Russian Defense Ministry Tu-154 plane with 92 people on board crashed in the Black Sea en route to Syria shortly after refueling at an airport in the resort city of Adler. Most of the passengers were members of the Alexandrov Ensemble, who were traveling from Moscow to Hmeymim airbase in Syria to take part in New Year celebrations.
"All circumstances of the incident will be thoroughly investigated. The necessary assistance will be provided to everyone affected by this tragedy," Medvedev said in a statement issued on the government’s website.
The list of the passengers of the plane also includes Anton Gubankov, the chief of the Directorate of Culture of the Russian Defense Ministry, and prominent Russian humanitarian activist Elizaveta Glinka, the head of Spravedlivaya Pomoshch (Fair Aid) charity. Russia's Channel One, NTV and Zvezda broadcaster have confirmed that their journalists were among the passengers of the aircraft.
