Moscow, September 20 (Interfax) - Experts have not found any trace of alcohol in the bodies of the pilots of the Yakovlev Yak-42 aircraft, which crashed near Yaroslavl in early September, Russian Investigative Committee spokesman Vladimir Markin said.
"According to the results of forensic tests, no alcohol has been found in the pilots’ blood," Markin told Interfax on Tuesday.
As part of the criminal investigation of the air crash, police and security agencies in the Yaroslavl region have been instructed to establish eyewitnesses among people living close to the crash scene, he said.
"Experts from the Center for Fuels and Lubricants Certification at the State Research Institute of Civil Aviation have been directed to conduct a forensic chemical analysis of fuels and lubricants," Markin said.
Also, trace evidence, chemical and other forensic analyses are due to be carried out, he said.
"Moreover, investigators will add to the criminal case dossier the results and the conclusion of the Inter-state Aviation Committee’s technical commission, which is currently conducting its own investigation of what caused the disaster," the Investigative Committee official said.
The investigative team consists of 70 investigators and criminal experts with experience in air crash investigation, he said.
On Sept 7, a Yak-42 carrying the hockey team Lokomotiv, which was flying to Minsk for a game, crashed near the Tunoshna Airport. 44 people aboard the plane (37 passengers and seven crewmembers) were killed in the crash.
Hockey player Alexander Galimov, who survived the crash, but sustained major injuries, died in the Moscow Vishnevsky Research Institute on Sept 12, bringing the death toll to 44.
The only crash survivor is board engineer Alexander Sizov, who is currently in the Moscow Sklifosovsky Institute.
Among the hockey players killed in the crash were 11 foreigners.
Many Lokomotiv players had participated in the Olympics and world championships.
A criminal case has been opened on the basis of the article of the Russian Criminal Code dealing with violations of air traffic safety regulations.
The two most probable causes of the crash are equipment failure and pilots’ mistake.
