This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-38441939
The article has changed 4 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Russian plane crash: The victims | Russian plane crash: The victims |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| When a military airliner crashed into the Black Sea on 25 December, with the loss of all 92 people aboard, the disaster sent a shock wave through Russian society. | When a military airliner crashed into the Black Sea on 25 December, with the loss of all 92 people aboard, the disaster sent a shock wave through Russian society. |
| It touched the worlds of entertainment, media and charity work, as well as the military itself. What do we know of the victims? | It touched the worlds of entertainment, media and charity work, as well as the military itself. What do we know of the victims? |
| The Alexandrov Ensemble | The Alexandrov Ensemble |
| Sixty-four members of the official choir of the Russian armed forces, men and women, were on the doomed plane, including Lt-Gen Valeri Khalilov, the Alexandrov's conductor. | Sixty-four members of the official choir of the Russian armed forces, men and women, were on the doomed plane, including Lt-Gen Valeri Khalilov, the Alexandrov's conductor. |
| The Alexandrov, which also includes an orchestra and dancers, also known as the Red Army Choir, created in 1928. | The Alexandrov, which also includes an orchestra and dancers, also known as the Red Army Choir, created in 1928. |
| It takes its name from its first director, Alexander Vasilyevich Alexandrov, who wrote the music to the national anthem of the Soviet Union. | It takes its name from its first director, Alexander Vasilyevich Alexandrov, who wrote the music to the national anthem of the Soviet Union. |
| Responding to news of the disaster in an interview, celebrated Russian actor Vasili Lanovoy could barely control his emotions as he explained the ensemble's significance: | Responding to news of the disaster in an interview, celebrated Russian actor Vasili Lanovoy could barely control his emotions as he explained the ensemble's significance: |
| "When I was a kid, during the [Nazi] occupation in 1941, I heard their 'Stand up, great country' for the first time, on the third day of the war. | "When I was a kid, during the [Nazi] occupation in 1941, I heard their 'Stand up, great country' for the first time, on the third day of the war. |
| "And when I heard yesterday, I was stunned. I think it is a great ensemble and it needs to be revived. It should not disappear." | "And when I heard yesterday, I was stunned. I think it is a great ensemble and it needs to be revived. It should not disappear." |
| 'Doctor Liza' | 'Doctor Liza' |
| One of Russia's best-known humanitarian figures, Yelizaveta Glinka - known popularly as Dr Liza - was executive director of the Fair Aid charity. | One of Russia's best-known humanitarian figures, Yelizaveta Glinka - known popularly as Dr Liza - was executive director of the Fair Aid charity. |
| She was on the flight to deliver medication to a university hospital in Latakia. | She was on the flight to deliver medication to a university hospital in Latakia. |
| In the Russian capital, she is mostly remembered for feeding, clothing and providing medical care to the homeless people who sleep in train stations. | In the Russian capital, she is mostly remembered for feeding, clothing and providing medical care to the homeless people who sleep in train stations. |
| "Liza Glinka helped the people that everyone turned away," human rights activist and opposition journalist Zoya Svetova, who knew her, told AFP news agency. | "Liza Glinka helped the people that everyone turned away," human rights activist and opposition journalist Zoya Svetova, who knew her, told AFP news agency. |
| She was also known for evacuating sick and injured children from the war-torn separatist regions of east Ukraine, for treatment in Moscow. | She was also known for evacuating sick and injured children from the war-torn separatist regions of east Ukraine, for treatment in Moscow. |
| Her actions in Ukraine brought her the enmity of some on the Ukrainian government side, who went so far as to accuse her of "abducting" children, while she was also criticised in Russia herself for her political views. | Her actions in Ukraine brought her the enmity of some on the Ukrainian government side, who went so far as to accuse her of "abducting" children, while she was also criticised in Russia herself for her political views. |
| But tributes were paid to her right across the political spectrum in Russia. | But tributes were paid to her right across the political spectrum in Russia. |
| Mikhail Khodorkovsky, the former oil tycoon jailed under President Vladimir Putin, said: "She was ready to lay down her life for what she thought right. And she did so. Our disagreements are in the past. May she be eternally remembered." | Mikhail Khodorkovsky, the former oil tycoon jailed under President Vladimir Putin, said: "She was ready to lay down her life for what she thought right. And she did so. Our disagreements are in the past. May she be eternally remembered." |
| Margarita Simonyan, head of Russian state broadcaster RT, wrote: "Dr Liza was a person who attracted nothing but admiration. Not for herself, it was never about her, only about the sick." | Margarita Simonyan, head of Russian state broadcaster RT, wrote: "Dr Liza was a person who attracted nothing but admiration. Not for herself, it was never about her, only about the sick." |
| Just a few weeks before the crash, Dr Glinka was quoted (in Russian) as saying: "We are never sure we'll come back alive because war is hell on earth." | Just a few weeks before the crash, Dr Glinka was quoted (in Russian) as saying: "We are never sure we'll come back alive because war is hell on earth." |
| TV crews | TV crews |
| Nine members of the Russian media were aboard the jet, including crews from Channel One and the NTV channels, and the military TV channel, Red Star. | |
| Their deaths became the subject of a furious row on Russian social media after socialite Bozhena Rynska suggested on Facebook (in Russian) that some of them had been killed as divine retribution for past misreporting by pro-Kremlin media. | Their deaths became the subject of a furious row on Russian social media after socialite Bozhena Rynska suggested on Facebook (in Russian) that some of them had been killed as divine retribution for past misreporting by pro-Kremlin media. |
| Her comments are now being investigated by Russian prosecutors, an official told Russia's Ria news agency. | Her comments are now being investigated by Russian prosecutors, an official told Russia's Ria news agency. |
| Anton Gubankov | Anton Gubankov |
| The head of the Russian defence ministry's Department of Culture, Anton Gubankov, worked to popularise the armed forces with the young. | The head of the Russian defence ministry's Department of Culture, Anton Gubankov, worked to popularise the armed forces with the young. |
| He once rapped on YouTube to encourage young Russian men not to fear military conscription. | He once rapped on YouTube to encourage young Russian men not to fear military conscription. |
| He also wrote the song Polite People, which celebrates the Russian soldiers who oversaw the annexation of Crimea from Ukraine in 2013 in a largely bloodless operation. | He also wrote the song Polite People, which celebrates the Russian soldiers who oversaw the annexation of Crimea from Ukraine in 2013 in a largely bloodless operation. |
| The crew | |
| The plane was flown by its regular crew of eight, Sergei Bainetov, chief of the Russian Armed Forces flight safety service, told the Rossiya state TV channel. | |
| Maj Roman Volkov (more than 3,000 flight hours) was in command, with Capt Alexander Rovensky his co-pilot (10 years of aviation service), the channel says. | |
| Other victims | |
| Two civil servants, one of them Oxana Badrutdinova, were also among the dead. |