What happened
On the night of the accident, an aircraft departed from Novosibirsk-Tolmachevo Airport at 03:42 local time. The flight crew was initially instructed to climb to 4,200 meters, a level they reached by 03:53 local time. Following this, the crew received clearance to continue their ascent to a target altitude of 6,000 meters.
While the aircraft was cruising at an altitude of approximately 5,400 meters, it struck a radiosonde weather balloon belonging to the Hydrometeorological Service. The impact with the balloon caused significant damage to the nose cone and the windshield, resulting in partial destruction of the cockpit area. Following the collision, the aircraft lost stability and entered a steep dive.
As the plane descended, it began to break apart at an altitude of 2,000 meters. The aircraft eventually impacted an open field situated roughly 20 km southeast of Toguchin at a speed of 300 km/h. The impact resulted in the total destruction of the airframe and 45 fatalities. Debris from the nose section and the weather balloon was discovered more than 6 km away from the primary crash site.
Findings
Investigations determined that the accident was caused by an in-flight collision with a weather balloon during night operations. It appears the flight crew had not been notified of the balloon's presence in the flight path.