Aeroflot - Russian International Airlines | Bureau of Aircraft Accidents Archives

The approach to Stalingrad Airport was completed by night and poor weather conditions with snow falls and fog. On final, at an altitude of 200 meters, as the pilot-in-command failed to establish a visual contact with the runway lights, he decided to abandon the approach and made a go around. ATC advised the crew to divert to Rostov or Voronezh but the captain obtained the permission to attempt a second approach. On final, in poor visibility, he was again unable to establish a visual contact with the runway lights but continued the approach when the copilot asked for a new go around procedure. In the mean time, the airplane struck tree tops, rolled to the right and crashed in a field located one km short of runway threshold. The flight mechanic was killed while all other occupants were rescued, some of them were injured. The aircraft was destroyed.

Probable cause:

Wrong approach configuration and poor techniques on part of the pilot-in-command who decided to continue the approach without visual contact with the runway lights. He also led the airplane passing below the minimum descend altitude without visual contact with the ground and in below-minima weather conditions.

Crash of an Antonov AN-2T in Anadyr

Date & Time: Nov 24, 1958 at 0145 LT

Type of aircraft:

Antonov AN-2

Operator:

Registration:

CCCP-L5676

Flight Phase:

Takeoff (climb)

Flight Type:

Scheduled Revenue Flight

Survivors:

Yes

Site:

Airport (less than 10 km from airport)

Schedule:

Anadyr - Anadyr

MSN:

1 56 473 15

YOM:

1955

Location:

Country:

Region:

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Circumstances:

The crew was performing a short 10 minutes flight between both Anadyr Airports and the airplane was carrying two passengers, two crew and various goods for a total weight of 880 kilos. Shortly after takeoff, while climbing to a height of 40 meters, the aircraft stalled from the rear and crashed. All four occupants were injured and the aircraft was destroyed.

Probable cause:

It was determined that the crew failed to secure the load properly prior to takeoff. At rotation, the freight moved to the rear of the cabin, causing the CofG to be out of the enveloppe and the aircraft to be out of control.

Crash of an Avia 14P in Privetnoye: 12 killed

Date & Time: Nov 7, 1958 at 1647 LT

Type of aircraft:

Avia 14

Operator:

Registration:

CCCP-52024

Flight Phase:

Landing (descent or approach)

Flight Type:

Scheduled Revenue Flight

Survivors:

Site:

Mountains

Schedule:

Baku – Sochi – Simferopol

MSN:

052 704 115

YOM:

Location:

Privetnoye

Autonomous Republic of Crimea

Country:

Ukraine

Region:

Europe

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Aircraft flight hours:

1787

Circumstances:

The crew was flying at an altitude of 1,500 meters in VFR mode above the clouds when he received the permission by ATC to descent to 400 meters. While cruising in cloudy conditions at the altitude of 950 meters, the airplane hit tree tops, nosed down and crashed in flames in a wooded area located in Privetnoye. The wreckage was spotted on the slope of Mt Kharpuzyany Kayas and all 12 occupants have been killed.

Probable cause:

The accident was the consequence of ATC errors who failed to monitor the flight properly in reference to approach procedures, and allowed the crew to descent to an insufficient altitude. First, the crew was granted to fly at an altitude of 1,500 meters instead of the minimum 2,100 meters requested. Secondly, the ATC allowed the crew to descend to 400 meters although he knew the aircraft was flying in clouds and above a mountainous area.

Crash of a Lisunov LI-2 in Grakhovo: 4 killed

Date & Time: Nov 2, 1958 at 1620 LT

Type of aircraft:

Lisunov LI-2

Operator:

Registration:

CCCP-84624

Flight Phase:

Flight

Flight Type:

Cargo

Survivors:

Site:

Plain, Valley

Schedule:

Stalino – Kharkov – Voronezh – Penza – Kazan – Izhevsk

MSN:

184 280 01

YOM:

1951

Location:

Country:

Region:

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Aircraft flight hours:

13175

Circumstances:

The crew departed Stalino on a cargo flight to Izhevsk with intermediate stops at Kharkov, Voronezh, Penza and Kazan, carrying a load of bottles of zinc nitrate for a total of 2,250 kilos. On the last leg from Kazan to Izhevsk, while in cruising altitude, the crew informed ATC that a fire erupted in the cabin and requested the permission to divert to the nearest airport. An emergency was declared and the captain decided to reduce his altitude and to attempt an emergency landing in a field when the airplane struck the ground, exploded and crashed. The aircraft was totally destroyed upon impact and all four crew members were killed.

Probable cause:

It was determined that some bottles of zinc nitrate broke in flight, causing the fluid to leak in the heating system and to ignite when the heating system was turn ON by the crew (the ignition point of zinc nitrate is 36° C). A fire erupted in the cabin, forcing the crew to attempt an emergency landing. Upon touchdown, several bottles broke and exploded, causing a major explosion of the aircraft that was uncontrollable and crashed in flames. Investigations were able to determine that the Chemical Company in charge to ship the load from Stalino to Izhevsk failed to secure the bottles properly. Also, the operator (Aeroflot) has not been notified of the content of the shipping and thus, the crew was not aware of the nature of the load. Doing so, the Chemical Company violated all dangerous goods procedures.

Crash of a Tupolev TU-104A near Kanash: 80 killed

Date & Time: Oct 17, 1958 at 2130 LT

Type of aircraft:

Tupolev TU-104

Operator:

Registration:

CCCP-42362

Flight Phase:

Flight

Flight Type:

Scheduled Revenue Flight

Survivors:

Site:

Plain, Valley

Schedule:

Beijing – Omsk – Moscow

MSN:

8 66 010 02

YOM:

1958

Location:

Kanash

Republic of Chuvashia

Country:

Russia

Region:

Asia

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Aircraft flight hours:

465

Circumstances:

While cruising at an altitude of 11,000 meters on a flight from Omsk to Moscow, the crew was informed by ATC that the route to Vnukovo was closed due to weather deterioration and was instructed to divert to Sverdlovsk and to reduce his altitude to 10,000 meters. Two minutes later, the pilot sent a mayday message, reporting he was losing control of the airplane that entered a dive. By an angle of 80°, the airplane struck the ground and crashed in a field located along a railroad track near Kanash. The aircraft totally disintegrated on impact and all 80 occupants were killed, among them several foreign citizens such as three Sudanese, one Cambodian (Cambodian ambassador in China), eight Czech, three Romanian, one Polish, five East-German, five Hungarian, three Moroccan, two British, five French, one Iraqi and one Laotian.

Probable cause:

It was determined that the loss of control was caused by severe downdrafts, updrafts and atmospheric turbulences encountered at high altitude while changing its itinerary and altitude. The aircraft then reach a critical angle of attack before entering a dive.

Crash of a Lisunov LI-2 near Sukpay

Date & Time: Oct 16, 1958

Type of aircraft:

Lisunov LI-2

Operator:

Registration:

CCCP-65708

Flight Phase:

Flight Type:

Survivors:

Site:

MSN:

184 286 02

YOM:

1948

Location:

Country:

Region:

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Circumstances:

The crew was apparently involved in an aerial photo mission when the left engine caught fire in flight. The pilot reduced his altitude and attempted an emergency belly landing in the tundra. The aircraft came to rest about 82 km southeast of Sukpay, near the Aksu River, in the Sikhot-Alin Mountain Range. There were no casualties but the aircraft was damaged beyond repair.
Sources & photos:
http://aleonkin.livejournal.com/341110.html
https://napev.livejournal.com/201959.html

Probable cause:

Engine fire in flight.

Crash of a Lisunov LI-2 in Kuybyshev: 4 killed

Date & Time: Oct 10, 1958 at 0114 LT

Type of aircraft:

Lisunov LI-2

Operator:

Registration:

CCCP-84733

Flight Phase:

Landing (descent or approach)

Flight Type:

Training

Survivors:

Yes

Site:

Airport (less than 10 km from airport)

Schedule:

Kuybyshev - Kuybyshev

MSN:

184 323 09

YOM:

Location:

Country:

Region:

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Circumstances:

The crew was performing a night training mission at Kuybyshev Airport. Following several circuits in the area, the crew started a new approach. After passing the inner marker, the crew continued the approach at a very low altitude (about one meter above the ground) when the airplane struck with its undercarriage the fence of a private property. It then struck two houses before crashing in a garden. Three crew members were killed while two others were seriously injured. One of the survivor died from his injuries two hours later. The aircraft was destroyed and no one on the ground was injured.

Probable cause:

It was not possible to determine the reason why the crew continued the approach at a so low altitude but the assumption that both engines failed due to fuel exhaustion was not ruled out. At the time of the accident, the engines were supplied by the rear right fuel tank that was almost empty.

Crash of an Ilyushin II-12 in Lazo: 28 killed

Date & Time: Sep 19, 1958 at 1615 LT

Type of aircraft:

Ilyushin II-12

Operator:

Registration:

CCCP-L3904

Flight Phase:

Flight

Flight Type:

Scheduled Revenue Flight

Survivors:

Site:

Mountains

Schedule:

Magadan – Okhotsk – Khabarovsk

MSN:

30 073

YOM:

Location:

Country:

Region:

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Aircraft flight hours:

7834

Circumstances:

Approaching Khabarovsk in limited visibility, the crew lost his orientation and continued to the south. Few minutes later, in poor weather conditions, the crew did not realize his altitude was too low. While cruising at an altitude of 850 meters, the aircraft struck the slope of a mountain (1,050 meters high) located in the Lazo district, about 145 km southeast of Khabarovsk. The aircraft disintegrated on impact and all 28 occupants were killed.

Probable cause:

ATC were unable to determine the exact position of the aircraft and to assist the crew efficiently. It is believed that both engines eventually stopped due to a fuel exhaustion and that the crew was unable to attempt an emergency landing due to limited visibility and rough terrain.

Crash of an Ilyushin II-14P in Konstantinovski: 27 killed

Date & Time: Sep 7, 1958 at 0318 LT

Type of aircraft:

Ilyushin II-14

Operator:

Registration:

CCCP-L1692

Flight Phase:

Flight

Flight Type:

Scheduled Revenue Flight

Survivors:

Site:

Plain, Valley

Schedule:

Frunze – Aktyubinsk – Uralsk – Moscow

MSN:

7 34 23 04

YOM:

Flight number:

SU164

Location:

Country:

Region:

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Aircraft flight hours:

2564

Circumstances:

Enroute from Aktyubinsk to Uralsk, while cruising at an altitude of 1,500 meters in marginal weather conditions, the aircraft was hit by lightning. The crew lost control of the aircraft which dove into the ground and crashed in a field located 4 km southeast of Konstantinovski, in the region of Aktyubinsk. The wreckage was found few hours later and all 27 occupants have been killed.

Probable cause:

The aircraft was struck by a lightning in-flight. Discharge went through the port control cables of the left aileron located on the left wing, behind the rear spar of the center wing between the 4th and 5th section. As a result, the crew was paralyzed or in a state of shock and the control of the airplane was lost instantly. The following factors were reported:
- Presence of thunderstorm activity,
- Overheating and rupture of the control cables on the left aileron due to the exposure to high temperatures,
- The crew was unable to send any distress call,
- The dive was quick, uncontrollable and at an excessive speed,
- The crew was unable to attempt an emergency landing in night conditions,
- Employees at the meteorological station in Aktyubinsk did not indicate any thunderstorm in the weather forecast,
- The observer at the weather station of Novoalekseevka noted the presence of a thunderstorm but failed to report it to the Aktyubinsk weather station, violating the published procedures.

Crash of an Avia 14P in Jõhvi: 1 killed

Date & Time: Sep 5, 1958 at 1252 LT

Type of aircraft:

Avia 14

Operator:

Registration:

CCCP-L2048

Flight Phase:

Flight

Flight Type:

Scheduled Revenue Flight

Survivors:

Yes

Site:

Airport (less than 10 km from airport)

Schedule:

Leningrad – Tallinn

MSN:

058 705 101

YOM:

Location:

Country:

Region:

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Aircraft flight hours:

1195

Circumstances:

While cruising on a flight from Leningrad to Tallinn, a passenger gave a message to the stewardess to be transmitted to the flying crew. The claims remains unclear and unable to enter the cockpit, the hijacker set on an artisanal bomb and a fire erupted in the cabin. From an altitude of 900 meters, the crew started a steep descent and completed an emergency landing at Jõhvi Airport. All crew members and passengers were able to evacuate the cabin and were uninjured while the hijacker was killed when the airplane was destroyed by fire.

Probable cause:

Hijacked and set on fire.

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