A Russian official said Sunday that the two airliners that crashed almost simultaneously Tuesday had fallen apart in midair, Interfax news agency reported.

    Flight data records suggest that the Tu-154 and Tu-134, believed to have been brought down by explosives, were destroyed while still in the air, said Transportation Minister Igor Levitin,who is in charge of the investigation in the twin crashes.

    The two Russian jets, which had taken off from Moscow's Domodedovo Airport, crashed within minutes of each other on Tuesday, killing all the 90 people aboard.

    Officials said traces of explosive were found in the wreckage of both planes and investigation has been focused on two Chechen women -- one on each plane.

    Terrorists were suspected of having a part in the twin crashes,as an Islamic group vowing support for Chechen rebels claimed responsibility for that attack and the downing of another airliner.

    Levitin said decoding the flight data recorders of the crashed airliners was nearly over but the information would hardly provide an accurate picture of what happened aboard the two jets.

    "We are continuing work to find out the circumstances of that tragedy," said the minister.