What happened
During a coordinated nighttime training exercise, two heavy transport aircraft departed from Dzhankoy Air Force Base. One of the aircraft involved was an Ilyushin Il-76 with the registration CCCP-76685, which was carrying a crew of eight people. The second aircraft, also a four-engine transport, was operating alongside the first as part of the same mission.
While performing the maneuvers, the two planes collided in mid-air. Following the impact, both aircraft entered a steep descent and crashed into Lake Sivash, located in Crimea. There were no survivors from either plane; the total number of fatalities reached 16 individuals across both airframes.
Findings
Investigations into the accident determined that the collision was the result of pilot error during the night flight operations.