Flight History
On 16 June 2024, a Safari VLA aircraft registered JU-9099, operated by New Kleos LLC, departed from Buyant-Ukhaa Airport at 10:53 local time for a training flight in the vicinity of Skyfriends and Nairamdal areas. The flight was planned to last 50 minutes with a return to Buyant-Ukhaa for one or two takeoffs and landings. The aircraft climbed to an altitude of 1900 m (6200 ft) along the Tuul River toward Skyfriends airport. Near ASEM village, the engine experienced a loss of power, and the airspeed could not exceed 150 km/h. At 11:07, the pilot reported an engine warning light via radio. Unable to reach the intended airport, the pilot selected a field for a forced landing at 11:14 at coordinates N 47° 52′ 49.9”, E 106° 48′ 29.6”, on the right side of the new Yarmag bridge. Another training aircraft, Aeroprakt A22 LS JU-9066, provided the location information.
Post-Incident Inspection
Examination of the aircraft at the landing site revealed no visible damage to the airframe, landing gear, control systems, or other components. The engine and its external parts appeared normal, but a black smoke trace was observed on the turbine outlet. Sufficient fuel remained in the tanks.
Aircraft Information
The Safari VLA, serial number SN:026-02-16SA, was manufactured in 2016 by Kitplanes For Africa Pty LTD in South Africa. It had accumulated 381.5 total flight hours, with 340.9 hours flown in Africa and 40.6 hours since its arrival in Mongolia on 23 August 2023. The aircraft was powered by a Rotax 912 ULST engine (serial number conflicting: SN:6772112 or SN:6772122), classified as a non-certified aircraft engine. The engine logbook was missing; data was derived from the airframe logbook. The aircraft's empty weight was recorded as 422.6 kg, and the maximum takeoff weight was listed as 700 kg, though the Pilots Operating Handbook noted an MTOW of 750 kg with an unspecified source.
Maintenance
The company's operations manual specified one technical officer position, but no such person was employed. All airframe and engine maintenance was performed by the Chief Executive, who held a Rotax 912 engine training certificate from 20 October 2023 but lacked an Aircraft Maintenance Engineer License (AMEL) or manufacturer authorization for the Safari VLA airframe. Maintenance tasks, including annual inspections and 100-hour inspections, were executed by individuals holding a pilot license (MN-CFC-A01) issued by the company, not a certified maintenance technician. The company had no qualified personnel to perform major or complex maintenance as outlined in its approved operations manual.