MOSCOW: The Russian military says that one of its long-range bombers has crash-landed in the Arctic, killing two of its crew of four.

The Defense Ministry said that the Tu-22M3 bomber crashed Tuesday while landing in a blizzard in the Murmansk region north of the Arctic Circle. The ministry said two crew were killed while two others were hospitalised.

The bomber wasn't carrying weapons, according to the ministry's statement that was carried by Russian news agencies. There was no immediate word on the cause of the crash.

The Tu-22M3 is a twin-engine supersonic heavy bomber built in the 1980s. Significant numbers have remained in service with the Russian air force, which has used the aircraft in its campaign in Syria.