What happened
On June 19, 2009, an ultralight aircraft, a SH-701 with registration RA-0062G, was deployed to an operational site at the Sovetskoye Runo plant in the Ipatovo district of the Stavropol Krai. The aircraft was operated by AeroTransService to assist with agricultural chemical spraying tasks. On this initial day, the pilot flew three mission cycles without formal authorization or flight plans for the specific airspace.
On June 20, 2009, the pilot completed seven spraying missions during the morning shift. Following these flights, the aircraft moved to a base landing site for rest. At 19:00, the pilot decided to resume operations for an evening shift, relocating the aircraft to a temporary landing area. After the aircraft was prepared and loaded with chemicals, the pilot commenced the first flight of the evening session over a new field where no signalers were present.
After exhausting the chemical payload, the pilot returned to the departure airfield. Prior to the final takeoff of the evening, no malfunctions were reported regarding the engine, aircraft systems, or chemical application equipment. The aircraft was refueled with 15 liters of gasoline and 100 liters of pesticides. At the time of takeoff, the total weight was 477.5 kg, which was within the maximum takeoff weight of 495 kg. The center of gravity was recorded at 25.6% MAC, which was within the permitted range of 25.4% to 33.4% for RA-0062G.