A passenger plane taking off from Russia’s busiest airport ran over and killed an Armenian man after he reportedly fled across the runaway while he was being deported.

Russian officials said the 25-year-old had died after being hit by the landing gear of a Boeing 737 as it took off on a Moscow-to-Athens flight at Sheremetyevo airport on Tuesday evening.

The man, named locally as Albert Yepremyan, is thought to have been discovered after the jet’s crew told air traffic control to investigate the incident, believing they had hit an animal in the darkness.

Mr Yepremyan is understood to have been in the process of being deported from Spain, having been initially placed on a flight from Madrid to Moscow.

He was then due to be transferred to a flight to Yerevan, the capital of Armenia, but escaped to the runway while being placed on to an airport taxiway bus.

“The man went through the airport gate during boarding for a Moscow-Yerevan flight, went to the bus, but quickly headed towards the runway instead of getting in,” an unnamed Sheremetyevo official told Russian news agency Interfax.

“On the flight from Madrid, Mr Yepremyan had started a fight. After landing, police were called on board and detained him.”

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The aircraft involved in the incident is understood to have landed safely at Athens International airport later that evening.

Ground crews discovered damage to the fuselage and human remains on the exterior of the plane.

In a statement, Sledkom, Russia’s main federal investigation body, said it had opened a criminal case over Mr Yepremyan’s death.

The organisation said it would determine whether the incident had been in violation of air travel safety regulations.

“After going through the check-in procedure for the flight , the man gathered with other passengers and proceeded to board the aircraft,” Sledkom said.

“Subsequently, under circumstances that are not currently understood, the young man, when boarding an apron bus, proceeded towards the airport runways.