Date & Time:
Mar 5, 1947 at 0953 LT
Type of aircraft:
Douglas C-47 Skytrain (DC-3)
Operator:
Registration:
CCCP-L952
Flight Phase:
Flight
Flight Type:
Scheduled Revenue Flight
Survivors:
No
Site:
Mountains
Schedule:
Tbilisi – Moscou-Vnoukovo
MSN:
14874/26319
YOM:
14
Flight number:
SU034
Country:
Georgia
Region:
Asia
Crew on board:
4
Crew fatalities:
4
Pax on board:
19
Pax fatalities:
19
Other fatalities:
0
Total fatalities:
23
Aircraft flight hours:
2236
Circumstances:
About an hour and 13 minutes after departure from Tbilisi Airport, the crew decided to modify his route to save time. Few minutes later, while cruising vertical of the Caucasus Mountain Range, the crew encountered poor weather conditions when the aircraft hit the slope of a mountain. SAR operations were conducted but eventually suspended few days later as no trace of the aircraft nor the 23 occupants was found. The wreckage was found by walkers in an isolated and mountainous area of north Georgia on June 20, 1947.
Probable cause:
Wrong decision on part of the crew to change the itinerary, against all published procedures and navigational rules.
