What happened
During the takeoff roll, the aircraft experienced a sudden drop of the right wing, leading to a significant rightward roll reaching an angle of 70 degrees. This maneuver caused the right wing to impact the snow-covered terrain approximately 129 meters to the right of the runway. Following this impact, the Tupolev Tu-154 veered across a taxiway, passing behind an Air Koryo Tu-154 that had recently arrived; during this movement, debris from the accident aircraft struck the stationary plane.
The aircraft eventually came to a stop in flames, having broken into three separate sections. The final wreckage location was situated 180 meters southeast of the runway threshold. The accident resulted in 24 fatalities, consisting of 15 passengers and nine crew members. Additionally, 78 people sustained injuries, while 12 occupants remained unharmed.
Findings
Investigations into the crash identified that the loss of control during rotation was driven by a combination of pilot error and asymmetrical fuel distribution. Specifically, there was a weight imbalance between the wing tanks, with the right tank containing 1,500 kg more fuel than the left tank. This asymmetrical fueling created excessive weight on the right side. Furthermore, the aircraft reached an angle of attack exceeding permissible limits after rotation, and the pilot-in-command failed to implement corrective actions for eight seconds, allowing the roll to reach its critical 70-degree angle.