Top general among Russian crash victims

MOSCOW: A top Russian general was among the 88 passengers killed after the Boeing-737 crashed on Sunday in the Urals city of Perm.
 
Chechnya war veteran, Colonel-General Gennady Troshev, decorated with the title of Hero of Russia and the Order of Golden Star was among the victims of the crash.
 
He was on the Chechen militant hitlist. However, investigators have ruled out indications of a terrorist attack at this stage, RIA Novosti said.
 
A team of investigators has been sent from Moscow to the scene of the disaster. According to Aeroflot airlines there were 83 passengers and 5 crew in the ill-fated plane leased from a Dublin-based company in May 2008.
 
The Boeing 737-500 built in 1992 was earlier in service with Air China and was said to be in perfect shape.
 
Twenty one foreign nationals were also on board the crashed airliner. No Indians were in the list of foreigners released by Aeroflot. Five people were lucky enough to miss this ill fated flight. They had left for Perm by train, Vesti channel said.
 
Aeroflot pledged in a statement to pay bereaved families up to USD 80,000 in compensation per victim. Meanwhile, the Governor Perm region has declared a day of mourning on Monday. President Dmitry Medvedev, who turns 43 on Sunday, was immediately informed of the crash by Emergency Situations Minister Sergei Shoigu.