What happened
On the morning of September 30, 2012, the pilot of an S-400 Capitan amphibious aircraft, registration RA-0968G, conducted a flight from the Veselovka water landing site located in the western part of the Bugazska Liman. The purpose of the flight was to visit a kitesurfing camp on the Bugazska Spit to say goodbye to acquaintances before the aircraft was scheduled to be moved to Novorossiysk for winter storage.
After completing a flight over the waters of the Bugazska Liman near the kitesurfing camp, the pilot attempted to maneuver toward the shore. During this process, the aircraft ran aground on a sandbar. The pilot had intended to take vacationers for a flight before returning to the Veselovka landing site.
The investigation
Investigations revealed that no flight plan had been submitted to Air Traffic Control (ATC) for the operations conducted on that day. Furthermore, no request for permission to perform a water landing had been filed, and no authorization was granted by the relevant authorities. The flight took place within Class C airspace, which is a border zone requiring specific ATC clearance. Additionally, the pilot did not undergo a pre-flight medical examination prior to the flights on September 30, 2012.