A plane that crashed in Russia killing 50 people was registered in Bermuda, the Department of Civil Aviation confirmed last night.

The Boeing 737 operated by Tartarstan Airlines was reportedly making a second attempt to land at Russia’s Kazan Airport on Sunday evening when it crashed into the runway and exploded.

All 44 passengers and six crew members have been confirmed dead including Irek Minnikhanov, a son of the president of the Russian Republic of Tatarstan.

Investigations into the crash are ongoing, but technical malfunction, pilot error and poor-quality fuel are all considered possible causes.

The aircraft has been in use since 1990, and according to AFP news agency reports, had previously been owned by Euralair Horizons, Air France, Uganda Airlines, Brazil’s Rio Sul, Romania’s Blue Air and Bulgaria Air.

Ross Webber, Permanent Secretary for the Ministry of Economic Development said: “The UK’s Air Accident Investigation Branch (AAIB) are aware of the incident and are working with the DCA and Russian authorities to establish the reason for the crash in accordance with their normal procedures.”

The crash is not the first involving a Bermuda-registered plane. Last April 31 people were killed when a Bermuda-registered plane crashed in Siberia during take-off.

In 2010, the United Bermuda Party expressed concern about the Island’s Aircraft Registry, noting a 2009 audit by the International Civil Aviation Organisation which concluded that Bermuda did not have a sufficient number of technical staff to effectively fulfil its safety oversight responsibility.

Then Premier Ewart Brown responded then that the aircraft registry was working to address the issues raised by the audit, and was compliant with international standards.