What happened
On November 29, 2014, the crew of a Fokker F28 Mark 0070 AC was performing pre-flight preparations for flight AUA 676 from Dnepropetrovsk, Ukraine, to Vienna, Austria, following the completion of a previous scheduled service.
At approximately 15:41 local time, the crew requested engine start from the tower, followed by a request to taxi to point D1 at 15:46 for de-icing procedures. During the taxiing phase, the lead flight attendant observed smoke developing in the rear section of the passenger cabin. In response, the crew initiated an emergency evacuation of the passengers at 15:53 and executed the required ground emergency checklists.
During the evacuation via the emergency exits onto the wings, one passenger sustained minor injuries. Additionally, the evacuation process resulted in physical damage to the aircraft, specifically nine dents on the left half of the interceptors (interceptors 1, 2, and 3) and two dents on the right half of the interceptors (interceptors 1 and 2).
The investigation
The investigation focused on the origin of the smoke within the cabin. Technical analysis determined that the smoke was caused by the failure of certain valves. This failure allowed hydraulic fluid vapors from an overflowing hydraulic fluid tank to enter the aircraft's air distribution system. Because this system is connected to the cabin via the air conditioning unit, the vapors were distributed into the passenger area.