Flydubai Passenger Jet from Dubai Crashes 59 Dead

Flydubai flight FZ981 has crashed in the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don killing all 59 passengers and crew on board. The flight was en route from Dubai and crashed during a landing approach.

Air-traffic control and local emergency services confirmed that the Boeing 737-800 jet crashed near the runway during a second approach in conditions of poor visibility.

“According to preliminary data, the Boeing 738 crashed in poor visibility conditions, some 50-100 meters left of the runway,”the source said.

“The plane, according to preliminary data, crashed during the second approach,” the source told Interfax.

All crew and passengers on board the plane were killed in the crash, according to the regional Emergencies Ministry.

“During the landing approach a Boeing-737 crashed. It had 55 passengers on board. All of them died,” a regional spokesman told TASS.

DETAILS: More than 100 passengers could have been on board https://t.co/bfeuoVdREn pic.twitter.com/NJ9xPvtgDg

— RT (@RT_com) March 19, 2016

CCTV camera footage posted on YouTube claims to have captured the moment of the explosion as the aircraft impacted the ground. However, its authenticity could not be immediately verified.

Flight radar route of #FZ981 that crashed on landing https://t.co/bfeuoVdREn pic.twitter.com/QFVm3WKyX6

— RT (@RT_com) March 19, 2016

Emergency crews are working at the scene of the crash and have already put out the fire, according to a TASS source. The airport is to remain closed until at least 6:00am Moscow time.