Over 100 feared dead in Black Sea air crash

The Emergency Situations Ministry said that plane had come down about six kilometers from the coast while heading for an airport in Adler, which services the resort of Sochi. But the head of Armenia's civilian aviation authority said the cause of the tragedy remained unclear.

"The only thing [we] know is that when the crew asked for permission to land, the air controller in Sochi responded that bad weather meant this was not yet possible," Gayane Davtyan said. "Contact with the crew was lost at 600 meters, when the plane went to circle for a second time."

According to RIA Novosti, rescuers said they had recovered 18 bodies from the wreckage of the Airbus A-320, which airline Armavia says was carrying 105 passengers and crew.