The CEO of French oil giant Total, Christophe de Margerie, died in a plane crash at a Moscow airport late on Monday when the private jet he was on struck a snowplow on takeoff.
Russian investigators yesterday said the driver of the snow-clearing machine was drunk and that his actions, along with “an error by air traffic controllers,” appeared to be to blame for the crash.
Total, Europe’s third-largest oil company, confirmed the death of its 63-year-old boss and said its board would call an emergency meeting.
“Total confirms with deep regret and great sadness that chairman and CEO Christophe de Margerie died just after 10pm on Oct. 20 in a private plane crash at Vnukovo Airport in Moscow, following a collision with a snow removal machine,” the company said in a statement.
“Four people were found dead at the scene of the accident, including three crew members and Christophe de Margerie,” it added.
French President Francois Hollande issued a statement saying he learned of De Margerie’s death with “shock and sadness,” while French Prime Minister Manuel Valls said France had lost “a great captain of industry and a patriot.”
Just hours before the accident, De Margerie had met with Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev at his country residence to discuss foreign investment in Russia, the Vedomosti daily reported.
The airport said visibility was 350m at the time of the accident. Moscow saw its first snowfall of the winter on Monday.
The crash is being investigated by the Interstate Aviation Committee and experts from Russia’s federal aviation agency.
The investigating committee said “it has been established that the driver of the snowplow was in a drunken state.”
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