Egypt Air Ilyushin Il-62 SU-ARX Collision with Passenger Stairs at Zurich Airport

Incident Overview and Aircraft Details On the evening of Wednesday, November 22, 1972, an Egypt Air Ilyushin Il-62 with the registration SU-ARX was being prepared for departure from Zurich Airport. The aircraft, which had arrived from London, was scheduled for a subsequent flight to Rome. The aircraft was parked at stand G3. The flight, designated MS 780, was delayed by approximately one and a half hours, creating significant time pressure during refueling and loading operations. The aircraft was found to be airworthy and permitted for traffic, with no pre-existing defects noted. The crew consisted of Aeroflot personnel, including a captain born in 1918 with approximately 19,500 flight hours (2,000 on the Il-62) and a copilot born in 1929 with approximately 12,000 hours (700 on the Il-62). No health issues were found among the participants at the time of the accident.