Date & Time:
Aug 30, 1977
Type of aircraft:
Antonov AN-8
Registration:
CCCP-48094
Flight Phase:
Flight
Flight Type:
Government
Survivors:
No
Site:
Plain, Valley
MSN:
0A3410
YOM:
1960
Country:
Russia
Region:
Asia
Crew on board:
5
Crew fatalities:
5
Pax on board:
2
Pax fatalities:
2
Other fatalities:
0
Total fatalities:
7
Aircraft flight hours:
6200
Aircraft flight cycles:
3889
Circumstances:
The crew was completing a flight on behalf of the MSP – Ministerstvo Sudostroitelnoi Promyshlennosti (Soviet Ministry of Naval Construction). While cruising by night, the pilot informed ATC that he lost the artificial horizon. Shortly later, control was lost and the airplane entered a dive. It partially disintegrated during the descent and eventually crashed in a pasture. The aircraft was totally destroyed and all seven occupants were killed.
Probable cause:
Failure of the artificial horizon for unknown reasons. The airplane later disintegrated in the air due to aerodynamic forces that exceeded its design and certification.
