The plane belonged to the 117th Regiment of the 18th Military Transport Aviation Division stationed at the airfield, which is located six kilometers from the administrative center of Orenburg in southwestern Russia, near the border with Kazakhstan. This type of Soviet-made aircraft is often used to transport the leadership of the Russian Defense Ministry. Earlier in the day, Russia’s Baza telegram channel reported that an An-3 plane crashed during takeoff about 1.5 kilometers from the town of Olekminsk in Yakutia, Russia, killing at least one passenger. There were five people on board: three c…