"Our main version is a spontaneous move by the stabiliser into an extreme position that caused the plane to make a steep climb at high speed, " Mr Chernov told Russian NTV television.

BBC: Moscow crash jet 'stabiliser jammed'

There have been dark hints from people at Boeing that manufacturing work on the Sonic Cruiser, a high-speed airliner, will move out of the state unless traffic between Boeing's factories around Seattle gets unclogged.

ECONOMIST: Citizens' initiatives