Polish Air Force Tupolev Tu-154M Crash at Smolensk Severnyi Aerodrome

Accident Overview and Investigation Authority On April 10, 2010, at approximately 0656 UTC, a Tupolev Tu-154M with tail number 101, operated by the Polish Air Force as flight PLF101, crashed while on approach to the Military Aerodrom Smolensk “Severnyi” in Russia. The impact and subsequent fire destroyed the aircraft. All 89 passengers and 7 flight crew members were killed, among them the President of Poland. Following the accident, the governments of the Russian Federation and the Republic of Poland reached a bilateral agreement that the Interstate Aviation Committee (IAC), a regional international independent safety investigation organization, would conduct the investigation. Although the aircraft was operated as a state aircraft, the investigation was carried out in accordance with the guidance provided in ICAO Annex 13 Standards and Recommended Practices. The United States National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) was requested to support the investigation because the United States was the state of design and manufacture for the TAWS and FMS units.