Aeroflot Flight 2022
Aeroflot Flight 2022 was a scheduled Soviet domestic passenger flight between Vilnius Airport in Lithuanian SSR and Vnukovo International Airport in Moscow, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union that crashed on 16 December 1973, killing 51 people on board. The five hundred mile flight suffered a loss of control as a result of a malfunction of its elevator, causing it to crash as it made its final descent into Moscow. At the time of the crash it was the worst accident in aviation history involving a Tupolev Tu-124, since it entered service with Aeroflot in 1962.[1]
Aircraft
The aircraft involved in the accident was a Tupolev Tu-124V, registered СССР-45061, to Aeroflot. The Tu-124V was a variant of the original Tu-124 which had been introduced in 1962. The 'V' variant of the Tu-124 modified the aircraft to be able to seat 56 passengers, instead of the original 44, and also had increased range and payload capacity. СССР-45061 was equipped with two Soloviev D-20P turbofan engines and had first flown in 1964. It was assigned to Aeroflot's Lithuania division. At the time of the accident, the aircraft had sustained 14,903 flight hours and 13,832 pressurization cycles.[2]
Crew and passengers
Six crew members were aboard Aeroflot Flight 2022. The flight crew consisted of:
- Captain Stepan Boyko
- Co-pilot Eugenijus Karnila
- Navigator Juozas Časas
- Flight engineer Yuno Shamaev
- Stewardess Maria Cricova
The crew also included a junior police lieutenant as a sky marshal (they were added after the hijacking of Aeroflot Flight 244 in 1970).[3]
All of the passengers were Soviet citizens, with the exception of one who was a West German citizen. Majority of the passengers were Lithuanians. They included four noted Lithuanian pediatricians, including Petras Baublys [lt], who traveled to a medical conference in Kharkiv. Bodies of the victims were cremated in Moscow on 21 December. The four doctors were buried in a public ceremony attended by Lithuanian First Secretary Antanas Sniečkus in Antakalnis Cemetery.[4]
Accident
At 18:10 MSK on 16 December 1973, СССР-45061 took off from Vilnius Airport in Lithuania SSR and proceeded east on a flight to Moscow-Vnukovo Airport in Russia with six crew and 45 passengers on board. Flight 2022 climbed to a cruising altitude of 7,800 meters (25,600 feet) and at 19:03 MSK air traffic controllers in Moscow gave the pilots clearance to begin a descent to 5,700 meters (18,700 feet). At 19:11 MSK the pilots reported the aircraft had entered a steep dive and were having difficulties recovering. Just 2,000 meters (6,600 feet) above the ground the pilots were able to briefly stabilize the aircraft however it then entered a stall followed by a spin. At 19:13 MSK the aircraft crashed into the ground near the village of Karacharovo, northwest of Moscow. All 51 people aboard the aircraft were killed. At the time of the crash, visibility was reported to be 2-4 kilometers with haze and cloudy skies.[5]
Cause
An investigation ruled out engine problems or weather having playing a part in the crash. In addition, there were no physical jams in the aircraft's rudder, aileron, and wing trim tab components. Investigators determined that a spontaneous short circuit had caused the elevator trim tab to deflect to and maintain an upward position. As a result, the pilots lost horizontal control and entered into an irrecoverable dive.[5]
See also
- Aeroflot Flight 8641
- Northwest Airlines Flight 85
- United Airlines Flight 585
- 1966 Felthorpe Trident crash
References
- ^ "ASN Aircraft accident Tupolev 124V СССР-45061 Karacharovo". Aviation Safety Network. 1973-12-16. Retrieved 2018-01-28.
- ^ "Туполев Ту-124В Бортовой №: СССР-45061" [Tupolev Tu-124V Bortovoy No.: USSR-45061]. russianplanes.net (in Russian). Retrieved 2018-01-28.
- ^ Dargis, Dailius (19 April 2010). "Gydytojų tragedijos žaizdų neužgydė dešimtmečiai" [The wounds of the doctors' tragedy did not heal for decades] (in Lithuanian). TV3.lt. Retrieved 11 May 2019.
- ^ Srėbalienė, Audrė (16–22 September 2002). "Šiemet - katastrofų vasara" [This year is the summer of disasters]. Ekstra (in Lithuanian). 36 (198). Archived from the original on 9 March 2013.
- ^ a b "Катастрофа Ту-124В Литовского УГА в Волоколамском р-не МО" [Tu-124V crash of the Lithuanian Civil Aviation Administration in the Volokolamsk region of the Moscow Region]. www.airdisaster.ru (in Russian). Retrieved 2018-01-28.
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