The Tu-154 airliner was carrying 91 people, including 83 passengers and eight crew members, according to the ministry.
It said all rescue services in the region have been deployed to search for the missing plane.
RIA Novosti cited an unidentified source as saying that the plane is likely to have “crashed in the mountainous area of the Krasnodar region.”
Local sources say journalists, military personnel, and musicians were on board.
Russia’s LifeNews cited unidentified sources as saying that the plane was heading for Syria’s Latakia Province, Press TV reported.
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