Relatives of Russia’s Lokomotiv Yaroslavl ice hockey team, which was almost wiped out in an air crash in September 2011, are to demand a new probe into the tragedy, the Izvestiya daily reported on Wednesday.
The team's Yak-42 crashed just after takeoff on September 7, 2011, as the team was heading to Minsk for their season opener against Dinamo Minsk. Forty-four people were killed including a slew of former NHL stars. Only a flight engineer survived.
In their letter, the families of those killed in the crash said the conclusion by Interstate Aviation Committee (MAK) experts blaming the pilots is biased and demanded that new experts from the Defense Ministry take part in a new investigation.
A MAK report in early November 2011 said the plane crashed due to poor coordination between the crew and lack of training. It also said a sedative drug was found in the blood of one of the pilots.
