What happened
On May 05, 2019, an Aeroflot passenger flight, operating as SU-1492, departed from Sheremetyevo Airport (UUEE) bound for Murmansk. The aircraft, a Sukhoi Superjet 100 (registration RA-89098), was climbing through the flight levels following its takeoff from runway 24C. During the climb, specifically between 15:08:09 and 15:08:11, the aircraft encountered a significant event that likely involved an atmospheric electricity strike.
This event caused the autopilot to disconnect and forced the fly-by-wire control system to revert to direct mode. The flight crew initially managed the aircraft manually while climbing, but the loss of normal flight control laws necessitated a return to the departure airport. After experiencing a temporary loss of radio communication on the primary frequency, the crew established contact via the emergency frequency and declared an urgency situation.
The aircraft proceeded with an ILS approach to runway 24L. During the landing sequence, the aircraft experienced a series of three distinct touchdowns. The first touchdown occurred approximately 900 meters from the runway threshold, followed by a second and third impact characterized by high vertical acceleration, reaching up to 5.85G. These severe impacts caused the destruction of the main landing gear legs and critical airframe structural components. The resulting damage led to fuel spillage and an immediate fire. The aircraft eventually came to a halt on the soil between taxiways 2 and 3, approximately 2,720 meters from the runway threshold, with zero fatalities and no specific injury counts reported in the source.
Findings
- The aircraft's flight control system reverted to direct mode following a suspected lightning strike.
- The landing sequence involved multiple high-G impacts that compromised the structural integrity of the landing gear and airframe.