What happened
Following a three-day closure of Mineralnye Vody airport due to severe weather across the Caucasus, two chartered IL-18 aircraft were utilized on December 31 to transport passengers stranded at Tbilisi Airport. The boarding process for the flight was noted as highly disorganized, with tickets left unchecked and an excessive number of people entering the cabin. While the aircraft had a capacity of 84 seats, 26 additional passengers were present, standing in the aisles or sitting on luggage in the galley. This overcrowding resulted in the aircraft's rear center of gravity exceeding limits by 1%.
During the flight to Mineralnye Vody, weather conditions remained poor, characterized by mist, light rain, and visibility restricted to 2 km with a cloud base of 120 meters. While on final approach to runway 12, the pilot-in-command could not identify the runway or approach lights. In response, the crew initiated a go-around by increasing power on all four engines. As the aircraft turned to a heading of 188°, it failed to climb sufficiently. The plane subsequently struck obstacles and crashed approximately 3 km southwest of the airfield. A post-crash fire destroyed the aircraft, resulting in 32 fatalities, including two crew members, while the remaining 87 occupants were successfully evacuated.
Findings
Investigators determined that the decision to execute a go-around was appropriate given the low visibility during the approach. However, the accident occurred because the crew continued a low-level circuit southwest of the airport, which led to the impact with obstacles. Contributing factors included the high-stress environment and the chaotic boarding situation at Tbilisi Airport, alongside the unsafe practice of carrying an excessive number of passengers beyond the aircraft's seating capacity.