Donna Carolina Bull, 53, was among the 44 passengers and six crew members who died when the nose of the Tatarstan Airlines plane hit the runway at Kazan airport.

Academic Donna Bull was an education consultant and the A-Level programme director at Bellerbys College in Cambridge was flying to Kazan for work, and was due to attend meetings in Moscow today.

James Pitman, managing director for Study Group’s higher education division, Bellerbys College and International Study Centres, said:

“We have received confirmation of the very sad news that our Bellerbys colleagues Donna Bull and Yana Baranova were on the plane that crashed in the Russian city of Kazan yesterday.

“Donna had flown out from the UK to Moscow earlier in the day, where she met Yana, and the two were heading to Kazan for the start of a 10-day marketing trip.”

Mr Pitman said Ms Bull joined the college in April last year as an A-levels programme manager.

“She was a very popular and well-respected member of staff and will be sorely missed by both her students and colleagues,” he said.

It is understood she was a frequent traveller to Russia and Ukraine.

It is understood the aircraft – which had flown from Moscow - was making its second attempt at landing when the disaster occurred on Sunday evening.

Read more:

http://www.theweek.co.uk/world-news/56116/british-woman-among-50-killed-russian-plane-crash#ixzz2l1GPI7UO

http://www.standard.co.uk/news/world/british-academic-donna-bull-among-50-killed-in-russia-plane-crash-8946177.html