Plane operated by Kazakhstan security agency crashes; 4 dead

A plane operated by Kazakhstan’s state security agency crashed in the Central Asian country on Saturday, killing four crew members and injuring two others, officials said.

The ex-Soviet country’s Emergencies Ministry said the two survivors were hospitalised.

The ministry said the Soviet-built An-26 two-engine turboprop crashed while trying to land at the airport of Kazakhstan’s largest city, Almaty. The plane had flown from the capital, Nur-Sultan, with only the six crew members on board.

Kazakhstan’s National Security Committee said it owned the plane. It said a probe into the cause of the crash has been launched.

The An-26 was designed in the 1960s and built in great numbers for both civilian and military use. Hundreds have remained in service in former Soviet nations and other countries around the world.