A plane carrying the players and staff of the Russian ice hockey team Lokomotiv Yaroslav has crashed shortly after take-off, reportedly killing 43 people.

The Yak-42 had 37 passengers and eight crew aboard when it collided with a communications mast near Yaroslav airport before plunging to the ground in a ball of flames.

The team, one of Russia's most successful, were on their way to Belarus for their opening league match in Minsk.

Reports have suggested that one team member, Alexander Galimov, survived the crash with 80% burns. One member of the plane's crew is also believed to have escaped alive.

Eye-witnesses have claimed seeing bodies and wreckage fall into the nearby River Volga.