Friday, May 11, 2012

'Did a Superjet crash? hahaha': Russian flight attendant sacked over Tweet about plane crash which killed at least 45 people

  • 'It's a pity it wasn't aeroflot' plane wrote attendant
  • Rescuers still searching after 12 bodies are found in mountains south of Jakarta
  • Superjet was on demonstration tour of Asia
  • Investigators yet to find out if crash was down to human or mechanical error
A tasteless tweet rejoicing at the news of a fatal plane which cost the lives of up to 45 people has cost a Russian flight attendant her job.

Officials for Russia’s biggest airline Aeroflot wasted no time in firing Ekaterina Solovyeva after she cruelly tweeted ‘hahaha’ after a Sukhoi Superjet 100 went down south of the Indonesian capital of Jakarta on Wednesday.

The stewardess wrote on her Twitter page: ‘Huh? Did a Superjet crash? Hahaha! This aircraft sucks, it's a pity it wasn't in Aeroflot, that would be one less.’

Ms Slovyeva swiftly removed the insensitive jibe, but not before other users had taken a screenshot and complained to the airline.

About 45 people, reportedly including one American, were aboard the Sukhoi Superjet 100 when it vanished from radar screens during what was meant to be a brief demonstration flight.

The passengers were mostly Indonesian aviation representatives, but there were also eight Russians -- four of them crewmembers and four Sukhoi employees -- as well as an American and a French citizen, officials said.

Salvage crews have located the flight recorder, which may offer clues to the cause of the crash, after the same 90-seat Russian-built jet had performed flawlessly on earlier flights piloted by an expert crew.

Russian President Vladimir Putin reportedly believes there’s a 'good chance' the crash wasn’t related to the design of the plane.

It is believed to be the worst demonstration accident in decades and the outcome of the investigation into its cause will be hugely significant for Russia’s attempt to make an impact on the global aviation scene.

The SuperJet was designed in conjunction with Western partners and equipped with cutting-edge systems, as Russia seeks to win a slice of the regional jet market.

The plane was on a promotional tour of Asian nations and had already carried potential buyers and reporters on flights in Myanmar, Pakistan and Kazakhstan. It was scheduled to move on to Laos and Vietnam.

Russia has spent about $1.4 billion developing the twin-engine aircraft with an Italian partner, Rome-based Finmeccanica SpA (FNC)’s Alenia Aeronautica SpA. It has a range of 4,600 kilometres (2,800 miles) and costs $35 million, according to the manufacturer.

Flawed design or technical malfunction would be potentially be a big blow for a plane brought into commercial service a year ago.

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