71 victims of Russian plane crash to be identified through DNA tests

The bodies of those killed in the Russian plane crash are so badly damaged that DNA tests will have to be carried out to identify them.

All 71 people on board the Saratov Airlines jet died after the engine is feared to have “exploded” mid-air, scattering wreckage and dead bodies over the Russian countryside.

Officials ordered that drones should be used to search for bodies and wreckage of flight 6W703, which crashed to the ground ten minutes after taking off from Domodedovo International Airport.

SEE ALSO: 71 feared dead in Russian passenger plane crash

Transport Minister Maxim Sokolov said: “It will be necessary to collect biomaterials from relatives.”

Photographs of crew members who died in the tragedy have now been released.

Among the 71 people killed were air stewardesses Anastasia Slavinskaya, 29, and Viktoria Koval and second officer Sergey Gambaryan, 34.

Two children, Evgeny Livanov, 12, and Nadezhda Krasova, five, and teenager Ilya Poletayev also died in the crash.

Shocking video footage has circulated showing what is understood to be the wreckage of the plane in a snowy field. Two further victims, both passengers, have also been named as Ulyana Son, 28; and
The jet is understood to have “broken apart in the sky”, scattering wreckage and dead bodies over the Russian countryside.

Horror images show parts of the An-148 plane lying in a snowy field as rescuers described seeing bodies “everywhere”.

One witness claimed there was an “explosion” while the plane was still in the air.

The local man said: “The explosion was huge. Everything was shaking. I heard the noise of jet turbines. Then silence.”

The explosion led to “windows trembling” on the ground, he said.
Local reports claim investigators are looking into whether one of the engines on the An-148 exploded.

There is no suggestion that this is a terror-related incident.

(SUN)

source http://punchng.com/71-victims-of-russian-plane-crash-to-be-identified-through-dna-tests/