A Russian Ilyushin Il-76 military transport aircraft crashed in the Korochansky district of the Belgorod region, approximately 50 kilometers (30 miles) from the border with Ukraine, on January 24, 2024. 

“Incident in Korochansky district,” Vyacheslav Gladkov, Governor of the Belgorod region, reported on his Telegram channel. “An investigative team and Emergency Situations Ministry employees are currently working at the scene. I changed my work schedule and went to the area. All the details will come later.” 

According to the Russian Ministry of Defense quoted by the state agency Ria Novosti, there were 74 people on board the ill-fated Il-76. These included 65 captured Ukrainian soldiers, six crew members, and three accompanying people. The prisoners were about to be exchanged, the ministry said. 

The Ilyushin Il-76 is a large, four-engine jet transport aircraft developed by the Soviet Union during the 1970s. It is designed to perform various roles, including airlifting heavy and oversized cargo and transporting troops. The Il-76 boasts a maximum payload capacity of around 50 metric tons and can transport up to 225 equipped troops. 

In September 2023, drones targeted a Russian airport in the north-western Russian city of Pskov, near the Estonian border, and damaged four Ilyushin 76 transport aircraft.  

Drone attack damages 4 Russian Ilyushin Il-76 heavy transport aircraft

• Defense
• War in Ukraine

byClement Charpentreau

2023-08-30