On March 21, 2010, a Tu-204-100, registration RA-64011, was operating flight TUP 1905/1906 from Domodedovo to Hurghada. Shortly after takeoff at 01:20, the flight crew detected the smell of burning within the cockpit near the city of Orel. In response to the smell, the crew decided to abort the flight and return to Domodedovo airport.
The aircraft landed successfully at Domodedovo at 03:08 after expending necessary fuel. Maintenance crews performed repairs on the aircraft, which were completed by 13:05. The investigation determined that the burning smell was caused by the overheating of the housing for air heater 6 and the captain's foot warmer. The faulty heater was disconnected during the repair process.
A replacement crew from the home base was assigned to complete the flight following the repairs. After undergoing medical checks and pre-flight preparations, the aircraft departed Domodedovo at 13:34 and arrived in Hurghada at 17:53. The flight from Hurghada to Domodedovo departed at 19:00.
During the return leg, the aircraft carried a crew of three—a captain, a second pilot, and a flight engineer—along with four flight attendants and one maintenance technician. There were no passengers or cargo on board. During the approach to Domodedovo, the tower reported runway visibility ranging from 1300 meters at the start to 550 meters at the end, with a vertical visibility of 60 meters.