The plane, crashed in the Belgorod region, caused no casualties or damage on the ground, the Emergency Situations Ministry spokesperson Darya Korovina said.

According to RIA Novosti news agency, six people were on board the plane. But Interfax news agency cited a source saying that five crew members and two citizens of Myanmar were on board.

It is so far unclear whether the foreigners were killed in the crash.

A source from the Russian defense industry told Interfax that the crashed plane was built for the Burmese Air Force.

The An-148 is a Ukrainian-Russian close-range passenger aircraft that can carry 70-99 passengers. The plane was developed by the Antonov Aviation Scientific Technical Complex.