MOSCOW, October 11. /TASS/: The crash of the SSJ-100 passenger jet that occurred in Moscow’s Sheremetyevo Airport this May has not affected the demand for these airplanes. Russian Minister of Industry and Trade Denis Manturov said on Friday on the air with the Rossiya-24 TV Channel.
"This was not related to flight safety. This was an issue linked to a human factor and therefore it could not influence and has not influenced to date the desire to purchase and use these aircraft," Manturov said.
A Sukhoi SSJ-100 of the Aeroflot airline, which took off from Moscow’s Sheremetyevo Airport for Murmansk on May 5, had to return to the airport in about 30 minutes after its departure, making an emergency landing and bursting into flames. There were 73 passengers and five crewmembers on board. A total of 41 people died in the air crash while 10 others were injured.
Investigators have opened a criminal case into the "violation of flight safety rules and aircraft operation that entailed the death of two and more people through negligence." They are considering several versions of the incident, including the pilots’ insufficient skills, a technical failure and unfavorable weather conditions.
