What happened
On September 17, 2022, an agricultural flight operation was scheduled to take place in the Dobrynsky District of the Lipetsk region. The mission involved the application of herbicides to sunflower crops for the Helios LLC farm. The operation was to be conducted using the Skif 1, registration RA-0196A.
The aircraft was transported to a prepared landing site near the village of Plavitsa from Morozovsk via road. The pilot and co-pilot had arrived in the village of Dobrinka, located approximately 8 km southeast of Plavitsa, on September 11, 2022. However, unfavorable weather conditions prevented any flight operations from occurring between September 11 and September 17.
Upon the improvement of weather conditions on the morning of September 17, the pilot decided to proceed with the scheduled spraying mission. The crew arrived at the Plavitsa landing site at 10:00 to begin pre-flight preparations.
The investigation
The investigation examined the regulatory compliance of the flight plan and airspace usage. It was determined that the pilot in command did not submit a flight plan to obtain authorization for the use of airspace on the day of the operation. While the flight area is situated within Class G airspace, the investigation noted that the crew failed to follow mandatory notification protocols.