A Ural Airlines plane made an emergency landing in a field in Russia on Tuesday after the pilot reportedly feared the plane did not have enough fuel to reach the airport.
The plane, carrying 159 people on board, was on a flight from Sochi to Omsk at the time of its emergency landing in the Novosibirsk region, Reuters reported, citing Russian news agencies.
“Failure in [aircraft’s] Russian news agency TASS quoted Ural Airlines CEO Sergei Skuratov as saying that the green hydraulic system occurred as the flight approached Omsk.
He added, “The flight increased fuel consumption, and the flight commander realized that there may not be enough fuel to land at Novosibirsk Airport.” “So, he decided to land the plane in a field…with the landing gear extended and he did so successfully.”
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Pictures published by Reuters showed the plane on the ground with its emergency slides deployed.
The Russian aviation agency said the landing occurred “at a location selected from the air” near the village of Kamenka, according to the Moscow Times.
All passengers were reportedly accommodated in the nearest village.
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The Moscow Times reported that Russia’s Investigative Committee also opened a criminal investigation into the incident.
The website also reported that Skuratov denied the idea that the plane – which he described as an Airbus A320 – encountered technical difficulties due to a shortage of aircraft spare parts due to Western sanctions due to the war in Ukraine.
“As for the Airbus service, we have the ability to perform all types of maintenance,” Skuratov was quoted as saying to the Russian media website RBC News.
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No injuries were reported after the emergency landing.