On September 21, 2022, a Ka-32S helicopter, registration RA-31591, operated by AO 'Avialift Vladivostok', was performing a ferry flight from Tashköprü to Chardak airfield in the Denizli region of the Republic of Turkey. The flight was intended to relocate the aircraft to a new base prior to scheduled firefighting operations in the Marmaris area.
During the flight, the aircraft experienced a dual engine shutdown. This failure was caused by complete fuel exhaustion. The crew attempted a forced landing, but the incident resulted in two fatalities.
The investigation revealed that the crew did not execute a planned intermediate landing for refueling. Furthermore, the crew failed to account for increased fuel consumption caused by flying at varying altitudes to follow the terrain, rather than maintaining a constant altitude.
Additional contributing factors included the crew's failure to select a landing site once the emergency fuel reserve alarm activated. The investigation also noted that the captain's flight mode selection and decision-making during the emergency stage were characterized by a lack of risk assessment and disregard for safety protocols.