Russian defence plane crashes

MOSCOW, Russia -- Up to seven people are feared dead after a military aircraft crashed in western Russia.

Viktor Beltsov, spokesman for the Emergency Situations Ministry, said the Russian Antonov-12 transport plane took off from a base in Rzhev on Tuesday.

It lost contact with ground controllers soon afterward, at about 5 p.m. (1300 GMT).

Emergency crews found the hull and fragments of the plane near the town of Myakotino on the border of the Tver and Smolensk regions, about 200 kilometers (120 miles) northwest of Moscow.

Defence Ministry chief spokesman Nikolai Deryabin appeared on state-run RTR television to give details of the crash.

The fate of those aboard was unclear, he said.

The aircraft, which Deryabin said he been carrying "technical cargo," was on a flight from Rzhev to Morshansk.

The cause of the crash is under investigation.

There have been almost 100 incidents involving Antonov-12 aircraft since 1963, according to safety records.