Russia recovers second flight recorder of crashed Tu-154

Divers have recovered the second flight recorder of the Russian military Tu-154 plane that crashed Sunday into the Black Sea, the Russian Defense Ministry said on Wednesday.

On Tuesday, the main flight recorder of the ill-fated plane was recovered and brought to the Central Research Institute of the Air Force near Moscow for decoding.

So far, no official reason behind the tragedy that killed 92 people on board has been announced.

Russia's Federal Security Service said earlier that investigators were considering a pilot error, a technical fault, bad fuel and a foreign object in the engine as the main possible causes of the crash.

Divers have recovered 15 bodies and 239 body parts by noon on Wednesday, the ministry said, adding that 13 bodies and 168 body parts had been sent to Moscow for identifications.

Since the start of the search operation, 12 large plane fragments and 1,547 small fragments have been found, the ministry said.

The search operation in the area of the crash continued on Wednesday, involving 45 ships, 15 submersibles, 12 planes, five helicopters and several drones. Over 3,500 people, including 192 divers, are currently participating in the operation, according to the ministry.

The Tu-154, en route to Russia's Hmeimin air base in the Syrian port city of Latakia, crashed shortly after takeoff from the Black Sea resort city of Sochi early Sunday morning.

Ninety-two people -- 84 passengers and eight crew members -- were aboard the plane. Most of them were members of the Alexandrov Ensemble, a renowned choir of the Russian Armed Forces, as well as nine Russian journalists. They were heading to the air base for New Year celebrations. Endi