Russia

Operator:

Registration:

CCCP-L1365

Flight Phase:

Flight Type:

Survivors:

Site:

Schedule:

Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk – Krasnoyarsk – Novosibirsk – Moscow

MSN:

30 086

YOM:

1947

Flight number:

SU010

Location:

Country:

Region:

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Circumstances:

On a night approach to Novosibirsk-Severny Airport, the crew encountered bad visibility due to fog. On final, the aircraft was 300 meters to the left of the glide and the crew failed to have a visual contact with the runway and ground. In such conditions, the captain decided to abandon the approach and made a go around. Few minutes later, the crew started a second approach with a horizontal visibility of 100 meters. Without any visual contact with the ground or the runway, the pilot-in-command continued the approach, passed below the decision height when the airplane hit trees and crashed in a wooded area located few km short of runway. The aircraft was totally destroyed upon impact but there was no fire. All 29 occupants were killed.

Probable cause:

It was determined that the visibility was below minima at the time of the accident. Because the crew failed to establish any visual contact with the ground and did not have the runway in sight, it would be necessary to divert to the alternate airport for a safe landing. Continuing the approach without any visual contact with the ground and passing below the decision height, the crew engaged the aircraft in a controlled flight into terrain.

Crash of a Lisunov LI-2 in Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk: 26 killed

Date & Time: Aug 26, 1954 at 1050 LT

Type of aircraft:

Lisunov LI-2

Operator:

Registration:

CCCP-L4679

Flight Phase:

Flight Type:

Survivors:

Site:

Mountains

Schedule:

Khabarovsk – Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk

MSN:

68 03

YOM:

1949

Flight number:

SU971

Location:

Country:

Region:

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Aircraft flight hours:

4219

Circumstances:

The crew started the approach to Yuzhno-Sakhalisnk from the southeast in marginal weather conditions due to low clouds. At an altitude of 400 meters, the aircraft hit tree tops and crashed inverted in a wooded area located on the slope of Mt Komissarskaya (714 meters high) located 13,5 km southeast of the airport. The wreckage was found a day later and a passenger was found alive but seriously injured while all 26 other occupants were killed. The aircraft was totally destroyed upon impact.
Crew:
Vasily Trofimovich Degtyarenko, pilot,
Vladimir Parkhomenko, copilot,
Vyacheslav Fedorovitch Eliseikina, mechanic,
Daniel Epifanovich Raznotsvete, mechanic,
Piotr D. Novikov , radio navigator.

Probable cause:

The radio navigator mistook two outer markers when the crew started the approach to Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk Airport, and referred to the outer marker of the Korsakov Airbase (frequency 684 kHz) instead of the outer marker of the civil airport of Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk-Bolchaya Yelan (frequency 670 kHz). Investigations reported that these two outer markers were too close from each other (13,5 km) with close frequency as well, which contributed to the mistake. The following factors were also pointed out: lack of visibility caused by low clouds (the crew failed to distinguish the mountain); the crew failed to use the radio altimeter and an abnormal action on part of the crew regarding the direction finder unit.

Crash of a Lisunov LI-2 in Verkhnyaya Salda: 4 killed

Date & Time: Jun 23, 1954 at 1305 LT

Type of aircraft:

Lisunov LI-2

Operator:

Registration:

CCCP-I403

Flight Phase:

Flight Type:

Cargo

Survivors:

Site:

Schedule:

Verkhnyaya Salda – Sverdlovsk – Omsk

MSN:

184 24 03

YOM:

Location:

Country:

Region:

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Aircraft flight hours:

9816

Circumstances:

Shortly after takeoff from Verkhnyaya Salda Airport, while climbing to a height of 30-40 meters, both engines failed almost simultaneously. The airplane stalled, hit power cables and eventually crashed in flames in a field located 1,500 meters past the runway end. Three crew members and a passenger were killed while three other occupants were injured. The aircraft was destroyed. The crew was completing a cargo flight from Verkhnyaya Salda to Omsk with an intermediate stop in Sverdlovsk on behalf of the Ministry of Aviation Industry (MAP - Ministerstvo Aviatsionnoi Promyshlennosti).

Probable cause:

It was determined that both engines failed due to a fuel exhaustion. Investigations confirmed that the fuel selector was connected to the left rear fuel tank that was empty. At the time of the accident, one of the passenger was seating at the copilot seat, against the published procedures. Also, it appears that most of the crew members were intoxicated, which was considered as contributory factors.

Crash of an Ilyushin II-12 in Magdagachi: 5 killed

Date & Time: Nov 4, 1953 at 2155 LT

Type of aircraft:

Operator:

Registration:

CCCP-L1367

Flight Phase:

Flight Type:

Postal (mail)

Survivors:

Site:

Schedule:

Irkutsk – Chita – Magdagachi – Khabarovsk

MSN:

30 090

YOM:

Flight number:

SU005

Location:

Country:

Region:

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Aircraft flight hours:

4204

Circumstances:

During a final approach completed by night and marginal weather conditions, the airplane hit tree tops located 5,620 meters short of runway threshold. Upon impact, the left wing was sheared off and the airplane crashed 358 meters farther in a dense wooded area. The aircraft was destroyed and all five crew members were killed.

Probable cause:

The aircraft was approaching Magdagachi Airport at an insufficient altitude following a wrong altimeter setting on part of the flying crew.

Crash of an Ilyushin II-12 in Magadan: 22 killed

Date & Time: Oct 27, 1953 at 1118 LT

Type of aircraft:

Operator:

Registration:

CCCP-L1765

Flight Phase:

Flight Type:

Survivors:

Site:

Schedule:

Magadan – Okhotsk – Nikolayevsk-on-Amur – Khabarovsk

MSN:

9 301 31 02

YOM:

Flight number:

SU783

Location:

Country:

Region:

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Aircraft flight hours:

4271

Circumstances:

The departure from Magadan Airport was completed in light snow conditions. After liftoff, the aircraft encountered difficulties to gain height and rolled left and right. At an altitude of 60-70 meters, the aircraft stalled and crashed six km from the airfield, about two minutes after takeoff. All five crew members and 17 passengers were killed while 10 others were injured, some of them seriously. The aircraft was destroyed.

Probable cause:

It was determined that the total weight of the aircraft was 996 kilos above the MTOW. Also, the crew did not prepare the flight properly and failed to remove the wet snow from the aircraft prior to takeoff, which increased weight, reduced performances and lift. The combination of an overloaded and non decontaminated aircraft caused the accident.

Crash of a Lisunov LI-2 near Mineralnye Vody: 1 killed

Date & Time: Oct 21, 1953 at 1745 LT

Type of aircraft:

Lisunov LI-2

Operator:

Registration:

CCCP-L4890

Flight Phase:

Flight Type:

Survivors:

Site:

Plain, Valley

Schedule:

Sverdlovsk – Kazan – Penza – Stalingrad – Mineralnye Vody

MSN:

184 361 06

YOM:

Flight number:

SU525

Location:

Country:

Region:

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Aircraft flight hours:

5130

Circumstances:

On the leg from Stalingrad to Mineralnye Vody, while cruising at an altitude of 2,700 meters, the crew encountered poor weather conditions with snow falls. On approach to Mineralnye Vody, the crew obtained the permission to land but the visibility was very low (about 30 meters) with snow falls when the aircraft hit the roof of a farm and crashed 226 meters farther in a snow covered field, about 17 km north of the airport. The captain was killed while seven other occupants were injured.

Probable cause:

The crew was approaching Mineralnye Vody Airport under VFR in IFR conditions.

Crash of an Ilyushin II-12 in Irkoutsk: 4 killed

Date & Time: Oct 14, 1953 at 0040 LT

Type of aircraft:

Operator:

Registration:

CCCP-L1727

Flight Phase:

Flight Type:

Survivors:

Site:

Schedule:

Moscow – Irkutsk – Chita – Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk

MSN:

9 301 32 17

YOM:

Location:

Country:

Region:

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Aircraft flight hours:

3429

Circumstances:

About a minute after a night takeoff from Irkutsk-Intl Airport, while climbing to a height of 100-120 meters, the captain sent a brief message saying a plane was facing him. He made an immediate sharp turn to the right when he lost control of the airplane that dove into the ground and crashed 2,5 km from the runway end and 500 meters to the right of its extended centerline. Four crew members (the captain, the copilot, the flight mechanic and the radio operator) were killed while all 24 other occupants were injured. The aircraft was destroyed.

Probable cause:

It was determined that no aircraft was present in the vicinity of the climbing Ilyushin II-12 at the time of the accident. The pilot-in-command misinterpreted the light on the top of the inner marker located 4 km from the runway threshold for an incoming aircraft and decided to make in immediate action to avoid any collision.

Crash of an Antonov AN-2 in Bagdarin: 3 killed

Date & Time: Sep 26, 1953 at 0835 LT

Type of aircraft:

Antonov AN-2

Operator:

Registration:

CCCP-L231

Flight Phase:

Flight Type:

Survivors:

Site:

Boeing B-50 Superfortress

Schedule:

Bagdarin – Romanovka

MSN:

1 03 473 04

YOM:

Location:

Country:

Region:

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Aircraft flight hours:

1035

Circumstances:

For unknown reason, the crew hurried the departure from Bagdarin to Romanovka. The aircraft was carrying eight passengers, two pilots, 300 kilos of cargo and 68 kg of mail. The captain asked the copilot to precipitate the takeoff procedure. So as soon as all eight passengers boarded, the crew started the engine, completed the taxi and joined the runway. After a takeoff run of 110 meters, the copilot started the rotation. The aircraft climbed to a height of one meter, continued for about 30 meters and banked left, hit the ground and crashed. Both pilots and one passenger were killed while seven other occupants were injured. The aircraft was destroyed.

Probable cause:

For unknown reason, the captain decided to hurry the departure from Bagdarin Airport. Thus, he failed to follow the pre-departure checklist and started the engine and the taxi procedure without making a visual check of the airplane. Investigations determined that the loss of control that occurred after rotation was the consequence of an error on part of the crew who failed to remove a chock that was blocking the ailerons on ground.

Crash of a Boeing RB-50G ELINT Superfortress off Askold Island: 16 killed

Date & Time: Jul 29, 1953 at 0617 LT

Type of aircraft:

Operator:

Registration:

47-145

Flight Phase:

Flight

Flight Type:

Survey / Patrol / Reconnaissance

Survivors: