Date & Time:
Apr 2, 1975 at 1418 LT
Type of aircraft:
PZL-Mielec AN-2
Operator:
Registration:
CCCP-29374
Flight Phase:
Takeoff (climb)
Flight Type:
Spraying (Agricultural)
Survivors:
Yes
Schedule:
Kursk - Kursk
MSN:
1G79-05
YOM:
1970
Country:
Russia
Region:
Asia
Crew on board:
2
Crew fatalities:
1
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
0
Other fatalities:
0
Total fatalities:
1
Aircraft flight hours:
6185
Aircraft flight cycles:
24233
Circumstances:
The crew was engaged in a crop spraying flight from Kursk for the kolkhoz (collective farm) im. Karla Marksa in the Kursk district of the Kursk region. The crew failed to use the full length of the runway for takeoff and tried to climb out too steeply, losing speed and height. The captain extended the flaps to 37° while flying low over a forest behind the airport's perimeter, causing additional loss of speed and height so the aircraft touched tree tops, crashed in the forest 100 metres further on (1,890 metres behind the runway threshold), caught fire and burnt out. The copilot was injured while the captain was killed.
Probable cause:
Poor flight preparation and wrong takeoff configuration on part of the pilot-in-command (captain). He failed to use the full runway length and started the rotation at an insufficient speed with en engine running too low. With flaps at 37°, this caused the airplane to adopt a nose-up attitude and a high angle of attack. The relative low experience of the copilot (90 flying hours) was considered as a contributing factor.
