What happened
On the afternoon of the accident, a crew of three departed Lukhovadamente-Tretyakovo Airport Runway 10 at 14:52 local time. The flight was a short ferry mission intended to move the aircraft type to Moscow-Vnukovo Airport following recent maintenance work. During the initial climb phase, the crew engaged the autopilot at 950 feet while maintaining an airspeed of 140 knots. As the flight progressed through the departure procedure, the pilots retracted the flaps, but an audible alert soon signaled a discrepancy in airspeed readings.
While the aircraft was leveled at 5,000 feet, the crew observed that the airspeed values on both the left and right displays were identical at 180 knots. During this period, the aircraft experienced oscillations in the angle of attack and pitch angle, which coincided with elevator deflections. A critical event occurred when the stabilizer entered a dive for 16 seconds, causing the pitch angle to drop and the aircraft to descend. The captain disengaged the autopilot to manually control the plane.
At 4,600 feet, the crew identified that the airspeed indications had become unreliable. Although the aircraft briefly stabilized at 4,500 feet, the speed subsequently increased beyond the maximum operational limit of 308 knots. Despite the automatic deployment of spoilers, the high engine power prevented the crew from slowing the aircraft. The plane entered a steep descent and a right bank. The aircraft ultimately struck a dense forest approximately 1,500 meters west of Apraksino at a speed of 365 knots. The impact caused the plane to disintegrate, resulting in 3 fatalities.
Findings
- The flight crew encountered unreliable airspeed indications during the climb.
- The stabilizer experienced an uncommanded dive for approximately 16 seconds.
- High engine power prevented the spoilers from effectively reducing the airspeed during the descent.