What happened
On January 4, a scheduled flight departed from Gelendzhik Airport at 13:25 local time, bound for Sukhumi, Georgia. The aircraft, a twin-engine airplane, was operating with two crew members and 16 passengers on board. At the time of departure, weather conditions were characterized by rainfall and a low cloud ceiling.
Shortly after takeoff, at 13:29 local time, the flight crew notified air traffic control that they were departing the airport vicinity, reporting a position approximately 12 km from the airfield at an altitude of 450 meters. Six minutes later, while flying within clouds, the aircraft struck trees and crashed in a forested region located roughly 22 km southeast of Gelendzhik Airport. The impact caused the plane to burst into flames.
The wreckage was discovered three days later, on January 10, near Praskoveyevka at an altitude of 350 meters. The accident resulted in 18 fatalities, with no survivors reported among the occupants.
Findings
Investigations concluded that the crew attempted to maintain flight under Visual Flight Rules (VFR) despite the presence of adverse weather conditions. Additionally, the crew did not account for the wind component, which led to the aircraft drifting 3.7 km off its intended course toward mountainous terrain. The crash occurred because the aircraft was flying at an insufficient altitude while navigating through clouds, leading to the collision with trees.