More Than $300M in Gold Falls From Sky After Hatch Blows Open on Russian Cargo Plane

Three tons of gold fell from a Russian cargo plane.
Gold bars flew out of the Russian plane. iStock

More than three tons of gold fell from a Russian cargo plane.

More than three tons of gold bars fell from the sky in Russia Thursday after the hatch of a cargo plane flew open, officials said.

The vessel was loaded with gold, platinum and diamonds and was taking off from the east Siberian city of Yakutsk when a door malfunctioned, causing more than $368 million of precious metal to plummet to the ground below, according to the Tass news agency.

 

The Antonov An-12 aircraft operated by Nimbus Airlines was taking off for Krasnoyarsk carrying 9.3 tons of gems and precious metals when a damaged door burst open, according to a government statement.

Authorities later recovered 172 gold bars weighing 3.4 tons, according to an Interior Ministry official.

 

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