AN AGING Russian airliner went down in heavy fog and burst into flames just short of a runway in northwestern Russia, killing 44 people in a crash that officials blamed on pilot error.

Two people were killed and 83 injured when a passenger jet with 155 people on board skidded off the runway during an emergency landing at a Moscow airport today, Russian officials said.

DOZENS of flights were delayed and worries grew over public health yesterday as Moscow choked in the worst smog in living memory.