Hero pilot lands passenger plane in violent storm despite hailstones ripping aircraft’s nose apart

A CRACK Russian pilot saved 30 lives when he landed a stricken passenger jet after hailstones smashed a gaping hole in the plane's nose.

Hero captain Nikolay Satostin, 28, managed to guide the the Polar Airlines turboprop to safety after a freak storm ripped the fuselage apart.

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He brought the plane down in Siberia's Yakutsk Airport after a 665-mile flight from Olenyok.

Horrifying pictures show how the full extent of the damage to the An-24's nose.

Most of the plane's white paint has been blasted clean off, with a series of gaping holes at the very tip of the nose.

Moscow-based air safety watchdog Rosaviation has set up a commission to investigate the incident.

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Investigators have already ruled out lightening being the cause.

Nose damage can be caused by birds - but the plane flew through a giant thunderstorm as it approached Yakutsk - the world's coldest city.

The airline has so far not given details.

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