Nuclear-capable Russian bomber crashes amid snowstorm: Defence Ministry

Reuters
A Tupolev Tu-22M3 strategic bomber drops bombs during the Aviadarts competition, part of the International Army Games 2018, at the Dubrovichi range outside Ryazan, Russia August 4, 2018. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov

MOSCOW (Reuters) - A nuclear-capable Tupolev-22M3 supersonic bomber crashed while trying to land in a snowstorm on Tuesday in Russia's far north, the Defence Ministry said, saying the aircraft did not have any weapons on board. Two of the plane's four-man crew died in the crash and a third later died of his wounds in hospital, Russian news agencies reported. The fourth crew member survived. The accident happened in Russia's Murmansk region when the Soviet-era plane tried to land at an airbase near the city of Olenegorsk in a fierce snowstorm and amid high winds. The plane broke up on the tarmac and caught fire. The Defence Ministry said it was investigating all possibilities, including a technical fault. (Reporting by Andrew Osborn; Editing by Gareth Jones)