An air hostess attached to the ill-fated Russian airlines which crash-landed moments after taking off has spoken on the chilling details of the last moments on the plane.
The Sunday crash happened at the Sheremetyevo Airport where the Aeroflot plane had taken off and come back crash-landing on the runway.
While still speeding, Tatyana Kasatkina, the air hostess said, passengers unbuckled their seatbelts and rushed to the jammed exits begging to be allowed to jump outside.
But before the emergency landing, the airplane had been struck by lightning under a thick cover of hailstorm.
There was strong hail, a noise was heard outside, then a bang occurred,” she said, adding that a flash and black smoke could be seen.
Kasatkina added that while the pilot announced that the plane was making its way back to the airport, the communication was “severely impaired.”
The hostess said when the plane stopped, passengers were terrified to the bones and she had to physically kick them out of the door to give room to the others to pass.
One of Kasatkina’s colleague who had gone to the back of plane to open an emergency door was trapped in the fire and died instantly.
When the plane stopped, the evacuation began right away. I did not see [the passengers] anymore, I was just kicking them out the door, so that they didn’t get jammed … Just was grabbing each one by the collar.
A total of 41 people died in the crash among whom was a crew member.
The plane according to the airline was in pristine condition having been manufactured only two years ago, and it had undergone maintenance in April.