Plane with Russian navy chief on board crash-lands in Ukraine

Plane with Russian navy chief on board crash-lands in Ukraine

A navy statement said that an engine failed on the plane carrying Adm. Vladimir Masorin while it was taking off from the airport in the Crimean city of Simferopol, forcing the crew to make an emergency landing. The landing speed was too high and the twin-engine plane rolled off a runway and broke into pieces, the navy said.

It said three officers were hospitalized but their lives were not in danger, the AP reports.

The navy said the cause of the accident was being investigated and a possible reason could be a bird getting sucked into the engine.

It was not immediately known how many people were aboard the plane.

Masorin was on an inspection trip to the Black Sea Fleet, which is based in Crimea.