Flydubai confirmed that one of its Boeing 737-800s crashed while attempting to land at Rostov-on-Don in southern Russia on Saturday morning. According to the UAE-based low-cost carrier and Russia emergency officials all 55 passengers and 7 crew were killed in the accident, which happened at 3.50 a.m. local time.
The aircraft was operating flight FZ981 from Dubai to Rostov. According to a statement by Russia’s accident investigation agency, it crashed 800 feet short of the runway.
According to Flydubai, the passengers included 44 Russians, 8 Ukrainians, 2 Indian and 1 Uzkebistani. All but one member of the crew were Russian, according to a statement from the country’s emergency ministry, which also confirmed that both of the aircraft’s flight data recorders have been found.
Flydubai was launched in 2009 and its route network covers 90 destinations. Its fleet consists of 49 737-800s, with 11 more on order. It also has a contract covering deliveries for 75 of Boeing new 737Max 8 narrowbodies (plus options for 25 more).