Incident Overview
A twin-engine aircraft conducting a weather survey mission over the Baltic Sea crashed into a school while returning to its base at Kaliningrad-Khrabrovo Airport. The aircraft carried two passengers and six crew members, all of whom were killed. On the ground, 27 people died—23 children and three adults—and two other children sustained serious injuries. The aircraft was destroyed by impact forces and a post-crash fire, which also severely damaged the school building.
Sequence of Events
The crew failed to set the altimeter correctly, leading the aircraft to approach the land at an insufficient altitude. While flying in low clouds, the pilot-in-command did not realize the aircraft's dangerously low altitude. The airplane struck trees, lost further height, and crashed in flames approximately 200 meters beyond the initial impact point, coming to rest on the school grounds.
Official Findings
The investigation determined that the probable cause was a wrong altimeter setting, which caused the aircraft to fly at an insufficient altitude. Contributing factors identified included a lack of visibility due to low clouds and poor assistance from air traffic control.