VIDEO: How the Crew of the Missing An-2 Aircraft Survived

The crew of the An-2 aircraft that went missing in Kamchatka managed to survive thanks to their ingenuity, local media report.

The aircraft crashed due to extreme cold conditions. The aircraft’s speed began to decrease because of frost and severe ice. The pilot managed to divert the aircraft from mountainous terrain, but during the landing, the An-2 skidded about 30 meters and overturned.

To escape the cold, the crew members dug a pit under the wing of the aircraft. There, they burned fuel to keep warm until rescuers arrived. The crew greeted Rosaviatsia rescuers with joyful embraces. “The military taught me how to survive,” one of them stated.

The pilots reported that they heard signals and knew they were being searched for, but due to bad weather, they were unable to respond.

Currently, all three have been taken to the hospital with hypothermia.

It's worth noting that the An-2 aircraft went missing on December 19 near the village of Klyuchi in the Ust-Kamchatsky district of Kamchatka.