FlyDubai pays 20,000 USD per crash victim to family relatives

Dubai-based low-cost carrier FlyDubai said Sunday it will pay 20,000 U.S. dollars per victim to their family relatives following the crash of its plane from Dubai to southern Russia on Saturday.

The airline said in an e-mailed statement that it is their priority to identify and contact the families of those lost in the tragic accident and provide immediate support to those affected.

It added "FlyDubai will additionally organize a program of hardship payments to the families amounting to 20,000 U.S. dollars per passenger, in accordance with our Conditions of Carriage, with the aim of addressing immediate financial needs."

The FlyDubai flight 981, which came from Dubai, was making its second attempt to land at the Rostov-on-Don airport at about 3:50 Moscow time (0050 GMT) on Saturday when it missed the runway and crashed.

"We ensure the highest standards of investigations and express our deep condolences to the family members of the victims and the crew," said CEO Ghaith Al-Ghaith at a media briefing on Saturday.

The ill-fated plane was carrying 55 passengers and seven crew members on board, including four children. Among the passengers, 44 of them were Russians, eight from Ukraine, two from India and one from Uzbekistan.

The plane was lastly fully security checked on Jan. 21, 2016 and "it was a brand new Boeing 737-800 aircraft made in 2011."

The pilot had 5,965 flight hours experience, while the co-pilot had 5,769 hours flight hours experience, Al-Ghaith said.

The exact cause of the crash remains under investigation. Endit