A Russian Defense Ministry airliner with 91 people aboard disappeared from radar screens over the Black Sea shortly after taking off from Sochi Sunday morning, Russian media reported.
Russian news agency RIA Novosti, citing an emergency service source, reported that the Tu-154 vanished from radar at around 5:20 a.m. local time (8:20 p.m. Saturday ET) around 20 minutes after takeoff.
Media outlet RT reported that the Defense Ministry confirmed that the jet disappeared from radar and said 83 passengers and eight crew members were aboard. The ministry reportedly said the jet took off on a planned flight and failed to check in with the control tower at 5:40 a.m.
The defense ministry said the plane was carrying the famous Alexandrov military band for a concert at the Russian air base in Syria, the Associated Press reported.
RIA said journalists were also aboard. A large search and rescue effort was reportedly underway. The Tu-154 is a three-engine aircraft.