Contract and Flight Planning
On December 28, 2015, a contract for aviation services was signed between LLC Air Company BARCOL and JSC Chernomortransneft. The contract covered the organization and execution of charter flights for patrol of Transneft system facilities, in accordance with annual pipeline route surveys and client requests. Under this contract, a flight was scheduled for December 5, 2017, using a Robinson R-44 II helicopter with registration RA-04308. The flight was planned under visual flight rules (VFR) in Class G airspace. A flight plan was submitted on December 4, 2017, to the Rostov Regional Center of the Unified Air Traffic Management System, specifying the intended route. Authorization for the use of airspace was received in a timely manner. Takeoff was scheduled for 06:00 local time on December 5, 2017.
Pre-Flight Preparations
The pilot arrived at the Podkumok landing site at approximately 04:30. The flight assignment was received from the client's representative. The assignment specified a route from Podkumok to the Uspenskaya oil pumping station (NPS Uspenskaya) and return. A pre-flight medical examination of the pilot was not conducted, which is permitted under the Russian Federal Aviation Regulations (FAP-128) when a medical professional is unavailable at the departure point; in such cases, the pilot-in-command decides on fitness for flight. The crew obtained necessary information on actual and forecast weather conditions via a telephone weather briefing from the Pyatigorsk aviation meteorological station before departure. The latest weather forecast amendment was received at 05:28. Pre-flight servicing of the helicopter was performed by a helicopter technician. The pilot conducted a thorough pre-flight inspection in accordance with the Robinson R-44 II Rotorcraft Flight Manual.