Accident Overview
On a cargo flight from Omsk to Liepaja with an intermediate stop in Gorki, an aircraft crashed while attempting to land at Liepaja. The airplane was carrying a crew of five and a load of eight tons of radio station components. It was not configured for cargo operations, lacking a cargo door and cargo compartment. The light components were stowed in the rear of the cabin, while heavy parts were placed in the front. No passengers were on board.
Approach and Crash
The descent to Liepaja was initiated during night and poor weather conditions, with visibility limited to 900 meters—below airport minima—and mixed rain and snow. During the approach, at an altitude of 310 meters and a speed of 265 km/h, flaps were lowered, causing the aircraft to become unstable on its roll and pitch axes. At 180 meters altitude, the autopilot was disconnected, and the aircraft deviated to the right of the approach path. While attempting to establish visual contact with the runway, the pilot-in-command initiated a slight left turn, at which point the aircraft developed an excessive rate of descent of 8 meters per second. It struck tree tops 1,690 meters short of the runway threshold, then stalled, hit the embankment of a railroad, and crashed in flames in a snow-covered field 155 meters to the right of the extended runway centerline. The aircraft was destroyed by impact forces and a post-crash fire. One crew member was seriously injured; four other occupants were killed.
Probable Cause
The official investigation determined that the crew decided to continue the approach in poor weather conditions with a visibility below airport minimums and an unstable aircraft. While trying to establish visual contact with the ground, the crew allowed the aircraft to descend at an excessive rate of eight meters per second and failed to take appropriate actions to initiate a go-around. The flight was poorly planned and prepared by the crew and the operator. The airplane was not suitable for such cargo operation; the cargo had not been weighed prior to the flight, and no weight and balance documentation was issued. The total weight of the aircraft was 752 kg above the maximum allowed weight, and the center of gravity was too far forward, out of the envelope, which contributed to an unstable aircraft on final approach.