The plane, a Soviet-era Antonov An-24 with 43 passengers and six crew members, was traveling to the small town of Tynda from Blagoveshchensk, near the border with China, when it went off the radar, Vasily Orlov, the regional governor, said in a statement.

Almost 50 people including children are feared dead after a Soviet-era passenger plane crashed in Russia’s far eastern Amur region, state media reported on Thursday, citing local officials.

Forty-eight people were confirmed dead after a plane crashed in Russia’s Far East region on Thursday, with search crews finding the aircraft's burning fuselage.