Hear what retired US Air Force colonel thinks about plane crash
02:23
What we covered here
Wagner founder Yevgeny Prigozhinwas on board a plane that crashed northwest of Moscow Wednesday, the Russian Federal Air Transport Agency said. All on board were killed, according to preliminary information, the Russian Ministry of Emergency Services said.
The crash comes months after Prigozhin launched a mutiny against Russia’s military leadership. The revolt was called off in a deal that required Prigozhin and his fighters to relocate to Belarus.
US President Joe Biden suggested that President Vladimir Putin may have been behind the plane crash. “I don’t know for a fact what happened, but I’m not surprised,” he said.
Meanwhile, Russia said three people were killed in a Ukrainian drone attack in the border region of Belgorod.
Russia will now likely try to take over Wagner Group, former CIA director says
From CNN staff
General view of the headquarters of Wagner Group on June 27, in Saint Petersburg, Russia.
VCG/Getty Images
Leon Panetta, former US defense secretary and ex-CIA director, told CNN it’s likely that Russia will try to take over the Wagner mercenary group, following the crash of a plane purportedly carrying its founder Yevgeny Prigozhin.
Some context: The plane crash in Russia comes just two days after a video circulating on pro-Russia military blogs showed Prigozhin claiming he was in Africa “making Russia even greater on all continents, and Africa even freer.”
Wagner fighters have been active in several African countries, including Mali, where they were invited by the ruling junta to quell an Islamic insurgency brewing near the country’s borders with Burkina Faso and Niger.
A number of CNN investigations, and others by human rights groups, have established Wagner’s involvement in and complicity with atrocities against civilian populations in Mali and the Central African Republic.
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"This is what happens when you make Putin look weak," says critic of Russian leader
From CNN staff
Bill Browder, a critic of Vladimir Putin, told CNN Wednesday he believes there is “no doubt” the Russian President is behind the crash of a plane purportedly carrying Wagner founder Yevgeny Prigozhin.
“Putin is a man who never forgives and never forgets,” said Browder, CEO of Hermitage Capital Management and formerly the largest foreign investor in Russia before he was expelled from the country.
“Prigozhin basically betrayed him. He was disloyal. He organized a rebellion,” he added.
Some context:Prigozhinwas on board a plane that crashed with no survivors northwest of Moscow, according to Russian authorities, just months after he launched a mutiny against Russia’s military leadership. The June revolt was called off in a deal that required Prigozhin and his fighters to relocate to Belarus.
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"Putin has a very long history of silencing his critics," US official says
From CNN's Kayla Tausche
Wednesday’s plane crash in Russia will not change the White House’s posture toward the Kremlin or the war in Ukraine, a US official told CNN.
Yevgeny Prigozhin, the chief of the Wagner mercenary group, was on board the plane that crashed with no survivors northwest of Moscow, according to Russian authorities, just months after he launched a mutiny against Russia’s military leadership.
The official noted that the eventual death of Prigozhin was largely expected by the Biden administration after the Wagner chief brokered a deal with the Kremlin in June.
The National Security Council would not confirm the veracity of reports of Prigozhin’s death, referring to its earlier statement: “We have seen the reports. If confirmed, no one should be surprised. The disastrous war in Ukraine led to a private army marching on Moscow, and now — it would seem — to this.”
Biden’s reaction: Earlier, US President Joe Biden suggested that Russian President Vladimir Putin may have been behind the plane crash.
“You may recall, I was asked about this,” Biden told CNN, alluding to comments he made in July in which he said Prighozin should be worried about his safety following the failed mutiny. “I said I would be careful what I rode in. I don’t know for a fact what happened, but I’m not surprised,” Biden said Wednesday.
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Flowers, candles and tributes left for Prigozhin following plane crash
From CNN’s Mariya Knight
A man places flowers at a makeshift memorial near PMC Wagner Center in St. Petersburg, Russia, on August 24.
Anastasia Barashkova/Reuters
People gathered in St. Petersburg Wednesday night to leave tributes for Wagner Group founder Yevgeny Prigozhin after Russian authorities said he was on a plane that crashed with no survivors.
Video showed members of the public unfurling a large banner outside the Wagner private military company’s headquarters that read, “Wagner PMC. We are together.”
People also placed flowers, lit candles, and left Wagner PMC chevron patches near to the entrance of the Wagner Center.
Earlier Wednesday, Russia’s aviation agency said Prigozhin was on board a private jet that crashed north of Moscow, killing all on board.
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What was Putin doing as the crash happened?
From CNN's Radina Gigova in London
As reports of the crash poured in on Wednesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin was in Kursk region leading a ceremony honoring both the 80th anniversary of the Battle of Kursk and Russian forces currently fighting in Ukraine.
The anniversary relates to a clash near Kursk in 1943, during World War II, when the forces of Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union clashed in a major tank battle, resulting in a Soviet victory.
Putin gave a speech at the solemn event at a memorial built in the village of Ponyri, in the Kursk region, and presented state awards to participants in what Russia still describes as its “special military operation” in Ukraine.
“The whole burden of fighting today, as in the years of the Great Patriotic War, lies primarily on our soldiers, on those who are on the front line,” Putin said at the event.
“All our fighters fight bravely and decisively. Devotion to the Motherland, loyalty to the military oath unite all participants in the special military operation,” he said.
Putin’s remarks aired around 9 p.m. local time (2 p.m. ET), while state media reported that the crash had occurred around 6 p.m. local time. Russian Emergency services said at the time that the Embraer aircraft came down near the village of Kuzhenkino, in Tver region, while flying from Moscow to St. Petersburg. There were 10 people on board, including three crew members, and all were killed, said Russian state media.
During the ceremony in Kursk, which Putin described as “grandiose,” the Russian president presented a state award to the crew of the ‘Alyosha’ T-80 tank, which was claimed to have destroyed a Ukrainian armored convoy on the Zaporizhzhia axis, according to state news agency TASS.
While in Kursk, Putin also met with residents, video that aired on Russia 24 showed. Residents shook hands with Putin and some even gave him a hug, in the Russia 24 clip.
Earlier in the day, Putin addressed, via video link, the BRICS summit that is underway in Johannesburg, claiming that Moscow launched its invasion of Ukraine in order to end a war “unleashed by the West.”
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Prigozhin "signed a special death warrant for himself," Ukrainian presidential adviser says
From CNN's Radina Gigova in London
Mykhailo Podolyak, adviser to the head of the Ukrainian presidential office, during an interview with Reuters on July 12, 2023.
Reuters
The “demonstrative elimination of (Yevgeny) Prigozhin” shows that Russian President Vladimir Putin “does not forgive anyone for his own bestial terror,” Mykhailo Podolyak, Ukrainian presidential adviser, claimed on social media.
“About Prigozhin: It is worth waiting for the fog of war to disappear… Meanwhile, it is obvious that Putin does not forgive anyone for his own bestial terror. Exactly the one that nullified him in June 2023,” Podolyak said.
The crash comes two months after Prigozhin launched a mutiny against Russia’s military leadership. The attempted rebellion was called off in a deal brokered by Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko that required Prigozhin and his fighters to relocate to Belarus.
But Podolyak claimed Putin was “waiting for the moment.”
Following that deal, criminal charges were dropped against the Wagner boss. But Putin said in a speech at the time that those on the “path of treason” would face punishment.
The Kremlin is yet to comment on the crash.
This post has been updated.
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Russia's aviation agency says Prigozhin was on plane that crashed. Here's what we know — and more headlines
The crash comes months after Prigozhin launched a mutiny against Russia’s military leadership. The attempted rebellion was called off in a deal that required Prigozhin and his fighters to relocate to Belarus.
Here’s what you need to know about the crash and other recent developments in the Russia-Ukraine war:
Prigozhin on list of passengers aboard plane, Russia’s aviation agency says: The Russian Federal Air Transport Agency said that Prigozhin was among the people on board the plane that crashed in the western Tver region. A Telegram channel linked to the Wagner private military group also issued a statement saying Prigozhin has been killed. The channel has previously carried Wagner propaganda videos, and Prigozhin’s official press service has linked to it in the past. CNN is unable to confirm the assertion. Other channels associated with Prigozhin and Wagner, including his official Telegram channel, have remained silent.
Numbers on plane engine debris seen at apparent crash site match plane registered to Prigozhin: Video of plane engine debris taken at the purported crash site in the Tver region northwest of Moscow matches a plane registered to Prigozhin. In the video, the last four digits of a registration number on the still-burning engine debris are seen: 2795. Prigozhin’s plane is registered as RA-02795.
At least 8 bodies found at plane crash site: Russian state media outlet Russia-24 has reported that eight bodies have been found at the plane crash site. Russian state media has also reported that 10 people were on board the aircraft.
Biden suggests Putin may be behind the plane crash: US President Joe Biden suggested that Russian President Vladimir Putin may have been involved in the crash. “You may recall, I was asked about this,” Biden told CNN’s Kevin Liptak Wednesday, alluding to comments he made in July in which he said Prigozhin should be worried about his safety following the failed mutiny. “I said I would be careful what I rode in. I don’t know for a fact what happened, but I’m not surprised,” Biden said today.
Russia launches criminal case following plane crash: The Russian Investigative Committee said it has initiated “a criminal case” following the crash of the Embraer Legacy aircraft. The committee said the case was based on Article 263 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, which involves the violation of the rules of traffic safety and operation of air transport.
Russian aviation authority to investigate crash: The Russian state aviation authority Rosaviation says that a specially created commission “has begun investigating the circumstances and causes of the accident with the Embraer-135 aircraft, which occurred on August 23 in the Tver region.” The authority’s statement said the plane belonged to MNT-Aero LLC, which specializes in business transportation.
In Ukraine, more than 500 children have been killed since start of war: Some 541 children have been killed in Ukraine since the war began in February 2022, British charity Save the Children said in a report on Wednesday. June was the deadliest month for children so far, with 11 children killed and 43 more injured.
Two teachers killed in Russian drone strike on Sumy region: Two teachers were killed and four people were injured when a Shahed drone hit a school in Romny, in the Sumy region in northeastern Ukraine, local authorities said Wednesday. The attack — which destroyed the building — took place around 10 a.m. local time (3 a.m. ET), the Sumy region military administration said in a statement. The bodies of at least two more of the school employees are believed to be under the rubble, Ukrainian police said.
Russia destroyed 13,000 tons of grain in attack on port: A Russian attack on the port of Izmail on the Danube River overnight destroyed 13,000 tons of grain meant for export, according to the Ukrainian Minister for Communities, Territories and Infrastructure Development Oleksandr Kubrakov. The grain was destined to go to Egypt and Romania, he said.
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New flight-tracking data shows "dramatic descent" of plane purportedly carrying Prigozhin
From CNN's Pete Muntean
Newly analyzed flight-tracking data show the private jet purportedly carrying Wagner Group boss Yevgeny Prigozhin experienced a “dramatic descent.”
Flight-tracking site FlightRadar24 says the Embraer Legacy 600 stopped transmitting position data at 6:11 p.m. local time, likely due to “interference/jamming in the area,” but the jet continued to transmit other data for another nine minutes.
FlightRadar24 says its data show the flight leveled off at 28,000 feet and made some slight altitude changes. The last minute of available data shows the plane making erratic climbs and descents, at one point climbing above 30,000 feet.
Then, at 6:19 p.m. local time, the data show the descent rate of the plane neared a blistering 8,000 feet per minute before the transmission of altitude data stopped.
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CNN geolocates area where plane purportedly carrying Prigozhin crashed
From CNN's Paul P. Murphy and Gianluca Mezzofiore
A CNN analysis of two videos shows where the plane that listed Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin among its passengers, according to the Russian Federal Air Transport Agency, crashed on Wednesday.
The crash site was in an area close to the village of Kuzhenkino in Russia’s western Tver region.
CNN previously reported that the plane was seen falling from the sky near the village.
In new video, shared on social media, a large smoke plume is seen rising from burning wreckage. A small explosion is also heard in the video.
CNN was able to geolocate the footage by comparing it to archival imagery taken by Maxar Technologies.
“Something’s blowing up,” a woman is heard saying in the video.
Bellingcat was first to geolocate the crash site.
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Russian transport agency says Prigozhin was on board plane that crashed
From CNN's Mariya Knight
Firefighters work at an aircraft wreckage following the crash of a private jet in the Tver region, Russia on Wednesday.
Investigative Committee of Russia/Reuters
The Russian Federal Air Transport Agency has confirmed that Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin was on board a plane that crashed in the Tver region Wednesday.
The aviation agency reported that, according to the carrier that operated the Embraer that crashed, the following people were on board, in addition to Prigozhin:
Sergey Propustin
Evgeniy Makaryan
Aleksandr Totmin
Valeriy Chekalov, a senior aide to Prigozhin designated by the US Treasury for acting “for or on behalf of Prigozhin and has facilitated shipments of munitions to the Russian Federation”
Dmitriy Utkin, a trusted lieutenant of Prigozhin’s since the beginning of the Wagner Group
Nikolay Matuseev
CNN’s Gianluca Mezzofiore contributed reporting to this post.
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Wagner-linked social media channel says Prigozhin has been killed
From Katharina Krebs, Josh Pennington and Mariya Knight
A Telegram social media channel linked to the Wagner private military group has issued a statement saying Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin has been killed in a plane crash north of Moscow.
The channel has previously carried Wagner propaganda videos, and Prigozhin’s official press service has linked to it in the past.
CNN is unable to confirm the assertion. Other channels associated with Prigozhin and Wagner, including his official Telegram channel, have remained silent.
A well-known but unofficial Russian Telegram channel that has been close to Wagner operations, Grey Zone, also claimed that Prigozhin had been killed.
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Prigozhin was listed on the manifest of a crashed plane. Here's what to know about the mercenary-turned-rebel
From CNN's Sophie Tanno
Yevgeny Prigozhin leaves the headquarters of the Southern Military District amid Wagner's pullout from the city of Rostov-on-Don, Russia, June 24.
Alexander Ermochenko/Reuters
Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin is listed among passengers on board a plane that crashed north of Moscow, according to Russian state media.
Prigozhin, the founder and bombastic leader of Russia’s private military group Wagner, was once a longtime ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, but that changed after the mercenary incited an armed rebellion against the Kremlin.
From humble beginnings to “Putin’s chef”: Prigozhin grew up in the tougher neighborhoods of St. Petersburg, also the president’s hometown. The men have known each other since the 1990s. Prigozhin became a wealthy oligarch by winning lucrative catering contracts with the Kremlin, earning him the moniker “Putin’s chef.”
His role in Ukraine: Prigozhin founded Wagner as shadowy mercenary outfit that fought both in Ukraine and, increasingly, for Russian-backed causes around the world. Typically a figure who has preferred to operate in the shadows, Prigozhin and his fighters were thrust into the spotlight following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last year. Wagner forces were heavily involved in taking the Ukrainian towns of Soledar and Bakhmut.
Dilemma for Putin: In recent months, Prigozhin became an outspoken critic of Russia’s military leaders. After complaining for more than a month of receiving insufficient support from the Kremlin in the grueling fight for the eastern city of Bakhmut, he announced in May that his troops would withdraw.
Prigozhin, left, serves food to Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, center, during dinner at Prigozhin's restaurant outside Moscow, Russia in November 2011.
Misha Japaridze/AP
The rebellion: Prigozhin launched an all-out rebellion against the Kremlin in June. The Wagner mutiny began when Prigozhin unleashed a new tirade against the Russian military and then marched his troops into the Russian city of Rostov-on-Don. Putin called Wagner’s actions “treason.”
“It is a stab in the back of our country and our people,” the president said in an address to the nation shortly after the rebellion.
Prigozhin responded on Telegram saying that Putin was “deeply mistaken.”
“We are patriots of our Motherland, we fought and are fighting,” the Wagner chief said in audio messages.
CNN’s Jerome Taylor and Josh Pennington contributed to this report.
President Biden suggests Putin may be behind the plane crash
From CNN's Nikki Carvajal
Joe Biden speaks to reporters in South Lake Tahoe, California, on Wednesday.
Kevin Lamarque/Reuters
US President Joe Biden suggested that Russian President Vladimir Putin may have been behind the crash of a plane near Moscow.
Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin is listed among passengers of the plane, and Biden said he wasn’t surprised that the Russian mercenary may have been targeted.
“You may recall, I was asked about this,” Biden told CNN’s Kevin Liptak, alluding to comments he made in July in which he said Prighozin should be worried about his safety following the failed mutiny.
“I said I would be careful what I rode in. I don’t know for a fact what happened, but I’m not surprised,” Biden said today.
At a press conference in Helsinki, Finland, in July, Biden joked that if he were Prighozin, “I’d be careful what I eat, keep my eye on my menu.”
Biden added that there is “not much that happens in Russia that Putin is not behind but I don’t know enough to know the answer.”
The president had just walked out of a fitness studio in Lake Tahoe, Nevada, where the White House says he attended a Pilates class followed by a spin class.
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At least 8 bodies found at plane crash site, Russian media reports
From CNN's Mariya Knight
State media outlet Russia-24 has reported that eight bodies have been found at the plane crash site in Tver, which is north of Moscow.
Russian state media has reported that 10 people were on board the aircraft.
Russian officials have not identified any of the victims, although Russian state news agency TASS reported that Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin was listed on the passenger manifest.
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Plane matching profile of aircraft registered to Prigozhin seen falling out of sky, Russian media reports
From CNN's Paul P. Murphy and Gianluca Mezzofiore
A plane which matches the profile of an Embraer Legacy 600, is seen falling out of the sky with one wing missing, according to video published by Russian state media outlet RIA Novosti.
CNN is unable to confirm the authenticity of the video, but RIA Novosti claimed it was the moment that an Embraer jet fell from the sky in the Tver region of Russia.
The plane seen in the video appears similar to Embraer Legacy 600, a match to an aircraft registered to Wagner founder Yevgeny Prigozhin. Its paint is dark and the engines — two almost boxy ovals — are set far back near the tail.
It’s seen falling in the video in one piece; there’s no indication of a catastrophic explosion in the body of the plane. However, as the plane twists, there appears to be only one wing still attached.
It is evident that the plane is out of control as it spirals downward.
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US officials expressed concern for Prigozhin's safety after failed rebellion
From CNN's Kylie Atwood
Yevgeny Prigozhin is seen in Moscow on April 8.
Yulia Morozova/Reuters
Top Biden administration officials have repeatedly and publicly warned that Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin could be killed by the Kremlin after he led an armed rebellion against Russia earlier this year.
“If I were he, I’d be careful what I ate. I’d keep my eye on my menu,” US President Joe Biden said in July.
CIA Director Bill Burns and Secretary of State Antony Blinken had echoed Biden’s sentiments, with Burns noting Putin has a long history of payback.
“In my experience, Putin is the ultimate apostle of payback. So I would be surprised if Prigozhin escapes further retribution for this. So in that sense, the president’s right. If I were Prigozhin, I wouldn’t fire my food taster,” Burns said later in July.
“If I were Mr. Prigozhin, I would remain very concerned. NATO has an open-door policy; Russia has an open-windows policy,” Blinken also said in July.
The State Department and the National Security Council have not responded to requests for comment on Russian state media’s reports about the plane crash.
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Biden has been briefed on the Russian plane crash
From CNN's Alex Marquardt and Kevin Liptak
US President Joe Biden has been briefed on the reported plane crash in Russia, the White House said.
A spokesperson for the White House National Security Council said “no one should be surprised” if the reports that Wagner founder Yevgeny Prigozhin was aboard the crashed plane are confirmed.
“We have seen the reports. If confirmed, no one should be surprised. The disastrous war in Ukraine led to a private army marching on Moscow, and now – it would seem — to this,” council spokesperson Adrienne Watson said in a statement.
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Russian Investigative Committee launches criminal case following plane crash
From Mariya Knight
The Russian Investigative Committee said it has initiated “a criminal case” following the crash of the Embraer Legacy aircraft.
The committee said the case was based on Article 263 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, which involves the violation of the rules of traffic safety and operation of air transport.
An investigation team is on the way to the scene, it added. “All the necessary forensic examinations will be appointed, a set of investigative actions will be carried out to establish the causes of the crash.”
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Russian aviation authority launches special commission to investigate plane crash
From Mariya Knight
The Russian state aviation authority Rosaviation says that a specially created commission “has begun investigating the circumstances and causes of the accident with the Embraer-135 aircraft, which occurred on August 23 in the Tver region.”
The authority’s statement said the plane belonged to MNT-Aero LLC, which specializes in business transportation.
“According to preliminary data, there were seven passengers and three crew members on board the aircraft, which flew on the Moscow-St. Petersburg route,” the authority said.
“At this stage of the investigation, specialists will also have to search for on-board means of objective control for their subsequent decoding and analysis of the records of the “black box,” the authority said.
