Russian mercenary leader Yevgeny Prigozhin and the other 10 people on board were killed in a plane crash on Wednesday near the village of Kuzhenkino in Russia’s Tver region, en route from Moscow to St. Petersburg.
Two months to the day after Prigozhin led a failed mutiny against the army’s top brass, the plane crashed.
A Telegram channel associated with Prigozhin’s Wagner mercenary group, Grey Zone, confirmed his death.
Prigozhin was one of 10 people on board the crashed plane, according to Russia’s aviation agency, Rosaviatsia. Russia’s emergency situations ministry said the plane went down near the village of Kuzhenkino in the Tver Region while en route from Moscow to St. Petersburg. But the Kremlin and the Ministry of Defense both remained silent on Prigozhin’s fate.
Flight tracking data shows that the plane, an Embraer (EMBR3.SA) Legacy 600 executive jet, displayed no warning signs until a sudden dive in the final 30 seconds at 3:19 p.m. GMT.
A criminal investigation into the events was launched in Russia. One or more surface-to-air missiles may have been responsible for shooting down the plane, according to unnamed sources quoted by Russian media.
International Aviation HQ reports that in over 20 years of service, the Brazilian Embraer (EMBR3.SA) Legacy 600 model of executive jet has had only one accident, and that it was not caused by mechanical failure.
Embraer stated that it has not provided maintenance for the aircraft since 2019, in accordance with international sanctions imposed on Russia.
At 6:11 p.m. (1511 GMT), according to Flightradar24’s online tracker, the plane disappeared from radar. A social media video depicted a plane that resembled a private jet plummeting from the sky.
Flight tracking data revealed that shortly after the crash, a second private jet believed to be associated with Prigozhin, which also appeared to be headed to St. Petersburg, his home base, reversed course and landed in Moscow.
