What happened
On the night of March 18–19, 2016, a Boeing 737-8KN, registration A6-FDN, operated by Flydubai, was performing a scheduled international passenger flight from Dubai to Rostov-on-Don. The flight departed Dubai at 18:37 on March 18 and maintained an altitude of 36,000 feet for much of the journey.
As the aircraft began its descent toward Rostov-on-Don, the crew requested updated weather and runway information. During the initial approach to runway 22, the crew reported wind shear detected by the aircraft's onboard warning system. Consequently, the crew initiated a go-around at 22:42:05 at an altitude of 1,080 feet. The aircraft subsequently entered a holding pattern at altitudes of 8,000 and 15,000 feet.
At 00:23 on March 19, the crew requested descent for a second approach using the ILS. During this second attempt, the crew manually disconnected the autopilot at 2,165 feet and the autothrottle at 1,960 feet. At 00:40:50, while at approximately 830 feet, the crew initiated another go-around. Shortly after reaching 3,350 feet, the aircraft entered a steep dive. At 00:41:49, the aircraft struck the ground approximately 120 meters from the threshold of runway 22 at a pitch angle of roughly 50 degrees and an indicated airspeed of approximately 340 knots. The crash resulted in 14 fatalities.
The investigation
The investigation examined the flight path, the crew's actions during the two go-around attempts, and the aircraft's performance during the final descent. The analysis focused on the transition from manual flight control to the sudden, steep descent and impact with the terrain near the runway threshold.