Sputnik- Russian Defense Ministry's Tu-154 carrying some 91 people has disappeared from radars after departing from Russia's southern city of Sochi, a source in the country's Emergency Ministry told RIA Novosti.

The jet with�some 91 people onboard, including journalists, military personnel, musicians from�Alexandrov Ensemble, lost contact with�land while flying over�the Black Sea, the source said.

Initially it was reported that the plane was carrying some 70 people. "According to�preliminary data, Russian Defense Ministry's Tu-154 disappeared from�the radar screens after�departing from�Sochi. About 70 people were onboard," a source said to�the agency on�Sunday. The priliminary data shows that the disappeared plane was heading to�Syria's Latakia.

The source added that the jet disappeared from�radars 20 minutes after�departing from�Sochi, Krasnodar Krai.

"The jet disappeared from�radars about�20 minutes after�takeoff: it departed [from Sochi] at�5.20 AM local time and the contact was lost at�about 5.40 AM." All rescue services of�Krasnodar Krai and neighboring regions are engaged in�the search operation.

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