A plane carrying a top Russian ice hockey team has crashed, killing almost everyone on board.
The Yak-42 aircraft was leaving Yaroslavl, north of Moscow, and flying to Minsk in Belarus.
It crashed immediately after take-off from the city, which is on the Volga River about 150miles from the capital.
The Emergency Situations Ministry said 45 people had been on board and only two are believed to have survived.
The reason for the crash is still unclear but the weather is said to have been sunny and clear at the time.
A security official said the plane had caught fire, according to Interfax.
The Lokomotiv ice hockey team from Yaroslavl, a leading force in Russian hockey, were travelling on the plane.
They were going to Belarus for the opening game of the season in the Kontinental Hockey League against Dinamo Minsk on Thursday.
The KHL is an international club league that pits together teams from Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Latvia and Slovakia.
Lokomotiv Yaroslavl came third in the league last year. The team is coached by Canadian Brad McCrimmon and includes several international stars.
It is not yet clear which players were on the plane at the time of today's crash.
The Yak-42 had been in service since 1980. Dozens are still used with Russian and other airlines.
President Dmitry Medvedev has announced plans to take aging Soviet-built planes out of service starting next year.
The
opening match of the KHL league's season in the city of Ufa was halted
when news of the crash came through and a minute's silence held.
KHL president Alexander Medvedev said: 'There has been a terrible tragedy'.
President Medvedev had been due to address an international political forum in Yaroslavl next week.
His spokeswoman Natalya Timakova said he expressed his condolences and would alter his plans for the forum.
The victims have yet to be identified. Lokomotiv's team includes European and NHL stars such as Czechs Karel Ranuchek, Slovakian Pavol Demitra and Swede Live Stefan.
Prime Minister Vladimir Putin ordered Transport Minister Igor Levitin to travel to the site of the crash, and Mr Medvedev sent his first deputy chief of staff, Vladislav Surkov.
The latest crash comes after another fatal accident in June when a Tupolev Tu-134 jet crashed while trying to land in fog in the northern city of Petrozavodsk, killing 45.
The agent for forward Pavol Demitra, a former NHL star, confirmed that the Slovak player was killed in the crash in Russia.
Demitra was a three-time NHL all-star who played for his native Team Slovakia in the 2002, 2006 and 2010 Winter Olympics.
The
Lokomotiv’s head coach, Brad McCrimmon, played 18 years in the NHL and
most recently served as an assistant coach with the Detroit Red Wings in
the U.S. before taking the Yaroslavl job in May.
Defenceman Karel Rachunek, who played with the New Jersey Devils in the 2007-2008 season, lost his life in the crash. Ruslan Salei, a defender from Belarus who had played the last 15 seasons in the NHL with four teams, was killed.
Defenseman Karlis Skrastins, who played the last 13 seasons in the NHL, as well as forward Josef Vasicek - most recently with the New York Islanders - spent a good deal of time in the NHL and were listed on the most current roster on the KHL website.
Forward Alexander Vasyunov played for the Lokomotiv between 2005 and 2009 before heading for the U.S. He was returning to play with Yaroslavl, his hometown team, after 18 games with the New Jersey Devils this past season.
Former NHLers Igor Korolev - who played for five NHL teams - and Alexander Karpovtsev - who won a Stanley Cup with the New York Rangers in 1994 - were listed as assistant coaches for Lokomotiv.
The Yak-42 aircraft was leaving Yaroslavl, north of Moscow, and flying to Minsk in Belarus.
It crashed immediately after take-off from the city, which is on the Volga River about 150miles from the capital.
The Emergency Situations Ministry said 45 people had been on board and only two are believed to have survived.
Rescuers at the crash site of Russian Yak-42 jet near the city of Yaroslavl
Russian TV footage showed the burning passenger plane after it crashed in the Volga River
A security official said the plane had caught fire, according to Interfax.
The Lokomotiv ice hockey team from Yaroslavl, a leading force in Russian hockey, were travelling on the plane.
They were going to Belarus for the opening game of the season in the Kontinental Hockey League against Dinamo Minsk on Thursday.
The KHL is an international club league that pits together teams from Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Latvia and Slovakia.
Lokomotiv Yaroslavl came third in the league last year. The team is coached by Canadian Brad McCrimmon and includes several international stars.
It is not yet clear which players were on the plane at the time of today's crash.
The jet carrying a top ice hockey team crashed just after take-off
Remains of the plane in the Volga River. The death toll has now hit 43
President Dmitry Medvedev has announced plans to take aging Soviet-built planes out of service starting next year.
KHL president Alexander Medvedev said: 'There has been a terrible tragedy'.
President Medvedev had been due to address an international political forum in Yaroslavl next week.
His spokeswoman Natalya Timakova said he expressed his condolences and would alter his plans for the forum.
The victims have yet to be identified. Lokomotiv's team includes European and NHL stars such as Czechs Karel Ranuchek, Slovakian Pavol Demitra and Swede Live Stefan.
Prime Minister Vladimir Putin ordered Transport Minister Igor Levitin to travel to the site of the crash, and Mr Medvedev sent his first deputy chief of staff, Vladislav Surkov.
The latest crash comes after another fatal accident in June when a Tupolev Tu-134 jet crashed while trying to land in fog in the northern city of Petrozavodsk, killing 45.
The agent for forward Pavol Demitra, a former NHL star, confirmed that the Slovak player was killed in the crash in Russia.
Demitra was a three-time NHL all-star who played for his native Team Slovakia in the 2002, 2006 and 2010 Winter Olympics.
The Lokomotiv ice hockey team in Yaroslavl, as taken in August this year. Almost everyone on the plane died
Defenceman Karel Rachunek, who played with the New Jersey Devils in the 2007-2008 season, lost his life in the crash. Ruslan Salei, a defender from Belarus who had played the last 15 seasons in the NHL with four teams, was killed.
Defenseman Karlis Skrastins, who played the last 13 seasons in the NHL, as well as forward Josef Vasicek - most recently with the New York Islanders - spent a good deal of time in the NHL and were listed on the most current roster on the KHL website.
Forward Alexander Vasyunov played for the Lokomotiv between 2005 and 2009 before heading for the U.S. He was returning to play with Yaroslavl, his hometown team, after 18 games with the New Jersey Devils this past season.
Former NHLers Igor Korolev - who played for five NHL teams - and Alexander Karpovtsev - who won a Stanley Cup with the New York Rangers in 1994 - were listed as assistant coaches for Lokomotiv.
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