Incident Overview
A single-engine airplane conducting a positioning flight from Berdsk to Mansky, where insecticides were to be sprayed over a wooded area, crashed on the slope of Mount Abatova. The aircraft was carrying a pilot, a mechanic, and a passenger. It departed Berdsk at 1201 local time for the final leg of the journey.
Weather and Terrain
En route, weather conditions deteriorated, resulting in poor visibility. The aircraft descended too low and impacted trees, crashing in a wooded area on the slope of Mount Abatova, which has an elevation of 747 meters. The accident site was located 40 kilometers east of Krapivninsky.
Wreckage and Fatalities
The airplane was destroyed by impact forces and a post-crash fire. The wreckage was discovered the following day at an altitude of 541 meters. All three occupants—pilot Rodzhapov, mechanic I. Valiullin, and passenger Yuri Pakhomov—were killed. Pakhomov may have been acting as a copilot, though he no longer held a valid license.
Probable Cause
The official investigation determined the probable cause to be controlled flight into terrain following the pilot's decision to fly under VFR mode in IMC conditions in an uncontrolled area. Contributing factors included poor flight planning and flying without a copilot.