Date & Time:
Dec 27, 1951 at 0426 LT
Type of aircraft:
Lisunov LI-2
Operator:
Registration:
CCCP-L4228
Flight Phase:
Flight
Flight Type:
Scheduled Revenue Flight
Survivors:
No
Site:
Plain, Valley
Schedule:
Yakutsk – Vilyuisk
MSN:
18421601
YOM:
1945
Country:
Russia
Region:
Asia
Crew on board:
6
Crew fatalities:
6
Pax on board:
14
Pax fatalities:
14
Other fatalities:
0
Total fatalities:
20
Aircraft flight hours:
4429
Circumstances:
On a flight from Yakutsk to Vilyuisk when the crew selected fuel supply from the left rear tank but forgot to switch to another tank when the left rear tank ran empty. Both engines stopped 31 minutes into the flight so the crew tried to make an emergency landing in the valley of the river Taras located near Namtsev, about 90 km north of Yakutsk. Unfortunately, the crew set the propellers on high pitch and lowered the landing gear too early so the aircraft did not make it to the valley, stalled and crashed into a wooded area some 200 meters from an open area. All 20 occupants were killed.
Probable cause:
Engine failure caused by a fuel exhaustion due to poor management of the fuel supply system on part of the crew. The following factors were considered as contributory:
- Poor flight organization,
- Poor crew coordination,
- Several wrong decisions were taken by the flying crew during flight.
- Poor flight organization,
- Poor crew coordination,
- Several wrong decisions were taken by the flying crew during flight.
