What happened
An Ilyushin 76 was operating a chartered flight carrying approximately 28,938 kg of humanitarian supplies from Billund, Denmark, to Kabul, Afghanistan. After a scheduled refueling stop in Baku, Azerbaijan, the aircraft proceeded toward Kabul. At the time of the departure from Baku, the weather forecast for Kabul indicated visibility would drop to 1200 m due to haze and snow, which was below the airport's required minimums of 5000 m visibility and a 450 m cloud base.
During the approach to Kabul, the weather conditions deteriorated further. While the crew was aware of certain conditions, they were not notified of a significant change in wind direction and a drop in visibility to 500 m caused by fog. As the aircraft approached the runway, the crew configured the aircraft with gear and flaps extended. At the decision height, the spoilers were deployed, and the descent continued. Although the captain issued an order to retract the spoilers, this instruction was not executed.
At an altitude of 310 m and roughly 4230 m from the threshold of runway 29, the aircraft was positioned 365 m to the right of the centerline. The aircraft descended below the glideslope and struck the ground 910 m short of the runway threshold while traveling at 230 km/h. The impact resulted in the destruction and separation of the left undercarriage, as well as severe damage to the cargo door and the lower aft fuselage. The incident caused a loss of pressure in the number 1 and number 2 hydraulic systems.
Following the impact, the crew applied takeoff power and attempted to climb away. An initial plan to divert to Termez, Uzbekistan, was abandoned because that airport was closed due to fog. The crew instead diverted to Dushanbe, Tajikistan. After performing a low pass over the field to allow air traffic controllers to assess the structural damage, the crew performed a forced landing.
Findings
- The flight continued the approach despite weather conditions falling below established airport minimums.
- The crew was not informed of updated weather values regarding wind changes and fog-induced visibility reduction.