I am including an excerpt from an Associated Press article Russian Plane Crash Kills at Least 122 (subscription required) from the online Wall Street Journal.
MOSCOW -- The brakes on a Russian plane may have failed as it landed and careened into garages in a fiery crash that killed at least 122 people in the country's second major commercial airline disaster in two months, Russian news agencies reported Sunday.
Early information gathered by investigators indicated that the braking system on the Airbus A-310 operated by Russian airline S7 had malfunctioned, the news agencies reported, citing unnamed sources.
The plane was carrying at least 201 people on the 2,600-mile flight east from Moscow to the Siberian city of Irkutsk. Fifty-eight people were injured.
An air stewardess, Viktoria Zilberstein, opened the emergency hatch in the rear of the burning plane, according to the Emergency Ministry. Ten passengers escaped this way, and others -- including a pilot -- were saved by rescuers including firefighters, ITAR-Tass reported.
Relatives streamed to a crisis center near Moscow's Domodedovo airport, where the flight originated. Some stumbled out in silent shock. One woman ecstatically exclaimed into her cell phone that a family friend had survived.
After veering off the runway at about 7:50 a.m., the plane tore through a 6-foot-high concrete barrier, crashed into a compound of one-story garages and stopped a short distance from some small houses.
Occasionally when I have a challenging question in using Microsoft Excel™, I will go to the Excel newsgroups to get answers. And usually when I am there, I will look around to see if I can help someone else. I am an above average Excel user, but not extreme guru.
A few years ago I helped a person with Visual Basics for Applications (VBA) problem that he was working on. As an aside, VBA is a programming language that is part of Excel. While exchanging technical notes, we exchanged a few personal notes and learned about each other's lives. He lives in Irkutsk, Russia. Over the years, Dmitri and I have become friends. I sent him an article regarding the plane crash.
I got a reply from him today saying that his father had been on that plane and has survived. His father was wearing his seatbelt upon landing and, after becoming conscious again, he was able to climb out through a hole in the roof and escape to safety. Aside from bruises and cuts, his father appears to be doing well.
Dmitri also had a co-worker who was returning with his bride from their honeymoon. They both lost their lives.
I extend my heartfelt sympathies, condolences, and well wishes to those affected by the tragedy.
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