Background
On an unspecified date, a cargo flight departed from Pevek at 0410 local time, bound for Zyrianka. The aircraft carried a crankshaft and other spare parts for an LM-3 locomotive, totaling 1,000 kilograms.
Flight Details
Upon arrival at Zyrianka, the crew was informed by ground personnel that the airport was closed to traffic and was instructed to divert to Seymchan Airport. The pilot modified the route accordingly but did not receive any information about the weather conditions at Seymchan. The aircraft continued at an altitude of 3,300 meters.
Accident
Upon reaching Seymchan, the crew encountered poor weather and was unable to locate the airport. After an unsuccessful landing attempt, the crew continued north. Eventually, the aircraft became short on fuel, forcing an emergency landing. The airplane crashed in a rocky canyon located 72 kilometers northwest of Seymchan and was destroyed upon impact. All five crew members were killed.
Probable Cause
Official findings stated that the accident was caused by a combination of factors: visibility less than 100 meters at the time of the accident due to snowfall, the copilot's inexperience, the wrong decision to divert to Seymchan without knowledge of the destination weather, insufficient crew rest time, lack of assistance by ground services upon arrival at Seymchan, and a wrong decision by Zyrianka Airport Authorities to close the airfield due to a runway flood, which investigations later revealed was not the case and was made in haste. When the aircraft approached Zyrianka, the runway was practicable with a length of 1,000 meters.