������Ƶ

MOSCOW: Investigators have recovered flight data recorders from the wreckage of a plane that crashed in Russia’s far east, killing 48 people, and will send them for analysis, Russian authorities said Friday.

The aircraft, an Antonov-24 operated by Angara Airlines, was making a second attempt to land in the remote Siberian town of Tynda when it disappeared from radar around 1:00 p.m. local time (0400 GMT) on Thursday.

A rescue helicopter later spotted the burning fuselage of the plane on a forested mountain slope about 15 kilometers (nine miles) south of Tynda’s airport.

Prosecutors have not commented on what may have caused the crash, but a rescuer quoted by the TASS news agency said the twin-propeller plane — almost 50 years old — was attempting to land in thick cloud.

Investigators are looking into whether the crash was caused by technical malfunction or human error, the agency reported.

“The flight recorders have been found at the crash site and will be delivered to Moscow for decryption in the near future,” Russia’s transport ministry said in a statement.

Russian authorities have also launched an investigation into the plane’s operator, Angara Airlines, and whether it complied with regulations, it added.

“Based on the findings, a decision will be made on the company’s future operations,” the ministry said.

Angara Airlines, a small regional carrier based in the Siberian city of Irkutsk, said it was doing “everything possible to investigate the circumstances of the accident.”

The company’s CEO, Sergei Salamanov, told Russia’s REN TV channel on Thursday that it was the plane’s captain — an experienced pilot with 11,000 hours of flight time — who decided to make the flight.

“The weather forecast was unfavorable,” he said.

The plane came down in a hard-to-reach area and it took a ground rescue team hours to reach the site.

Russia’s transport ministry said the families of the 48 killed — six of whom were crew — would receive five million rubles’ ($63,000) compensation each.

The number killed could have risen to 49 if the Marina Avalyan, who was already sitting on the plane, had not been asked by her daughter to urgently get off and return home, according to a story reported by Argumenty i Fakty newspaper.

The daughter wanted Avalyan to look after her newborn baby, as she was taking her second child to a hospital, the daily said.

“I have no words to describe it: is this a miracle? Thank God she returned! My child has saved my mother,” Zimina told Argumenty i Fakty.

LONDON: Scottish First Minister John Swinney has vowed to raise the “unimaginable suffering” in Gaza when he meets Donald Trump during the US president’s four-day visit to Scotland this weekend.

Describing the trip as “a landmark moment” in US-Scottish relations, Swinney said the visit provides a key platform for Scotland to express its views on pressing global issues.

“As we welcome the president of the United States, Scotland will be showcased on the world stage,” Swinney said.

“This provides Scotland with a platform to make its voice heard on the issues that matter, including war and peace, justice and democracy.

“As first minister, it is my responsibility to advance our interests, raise global and humanitarian issues of significant importance, including the unimaginable suffering we are witnessing in Gaza, and ensure Scotland’s voice is heard at the highest levels of government across the world.”

Trump said on Friday that he was “looking forward” to meeting Swinney during the trip.

Swinney is facing increasing pressure from within the Scottish National Party to adopt a strong stance on the Gaza conflict. On Wednesday, his predecessor and former First Minister Humza Yousaf and his wife Nadia El-Nakla, who has family in Gaza, issued a direct plea via social media.

“Millions in Gaza are being deliberately starved while Israel withholds food mere kilometres away. Words are not enough,” they wrote. “Force Israel to open the borders and allow aid to flow in.”

El-Nakla, who also convenes the SNP Friends of Palestine group, told The Times that the Trump meeting represented “a critical opportunity to raise, directly and unequivocally, the ongoing genocide in Gaza.”

She said: “Time is not on the side of the people there. As I speak, my family — like millions of others — is starving. The first minister must demand that Trump use his influence to compel Israel to end the starvation and ethnic cleansing of the Palestinian people.”

While highlighting the humanitarian issues at stake, Swinney also noted the wider benefits of the visit in terms of showcasing Scotland’s tourism and investment potential. He expressed confidence that planned protests would remain peaceful and respectful.

He said he believed demonstrators would “do Scotland proud” and act “peacefully and lawfully.” Rallies are being organized by the Stop Trump Coalition in Edinburgh and Aberdeen, with others expected near Turnberry and Menie, where Trump owns resorts.

Trump is expected to stay at Turnberry over the weekend before meeting UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer there on Monday. He will then travel to Aberdeenshire to mark the opening of a new golf course named after his mother. Although the visit is private, a joint press conference with Trump and Starmer is expected.

Police have warned that the scale of the operation could stretch resources, with the Scottish Police Federation stating it may double response times elsewhere.