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Emergency employees work at the side of the crashed Soviet-built An-26 two-engine turboprop at the airport of Kazakhstan's largest city, Almaty, Kazakhstan, Saturday, March 13, 2021. Officials in Kazakhstan say a plane operated by the country's state security agency has crashed, killing four crew members and injuring the other two. The Emergencies Ministry said the Soviet-built An-26 two-engine turboprop crashed while trying to land Saturday at the airport of Kazakhstan's largest city, Almaty. (AP Photo/Vladimir Tretyakov)

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Plane crashes in Kazakhstan, fate of 6 crew unclear

By Associated Press AP

PUBLISHED 3:57 PM ET Mar. 13, 2021

MOSCOW (AP) — A plane operated by Kazakhstan's state security agency crashed in the Central Asian country on Saturday, killing four crew members and injuring two others, officials said.

The ex-Soviet country's Emergencies Ministry said the two survivors were hospitalized.

The ministry said the Soviet-built An-26 two-engine turboprop crashed while trying to land at the airport of Kazakhstan’s largest city, Almaty. The plane had flown from the capital, Nur-Sultan, with only the six crew members on board.

Kazakhstan's National Security Committee said it owned the plane. It said a probe into the cause of the crash has been launched.

The An-26 was designed in the 1960s and built in great numbers for both civilian and military use. Hundreds have remained in service in former Soviet nations and other countries around the world.