What happened
On the day of the accident, a Tupolev TU-134 was performing a routine flight from Tallinn toward Moscow. As the aircraft entered the Lviv Terminal Control Area (TMA), air traffic controllers instructed the crew to descend from 4,800 meters to 4,200 meters. During this period, the crew was notified that an Antonov AN-26, which had departed from Lviv-Sknyliv Airport at 12:02 LT, was climbing through 3,900 meters.
The Antonov AN-26 was transporting 15 passengers, including several members of the Carpathian Military contingent. At 12:12 LT, the crew of the Tupolev TU-134 received clearance to descend below 4,200 meters. One minute later, while both aircraft were operating within cloud cover at an altitude of 3,900 meters, they collided. The impact forced both planes into a steep dive, leading to a crash in an open field near Zolochiv, approximately 60 km east of Lviv. The accident resulted in 94 fatalities, with no survivors from either aircraft.
Findings
The investigation concluded that the collision was primarily caused by inadequate radar coverage provided by air traffic control, which prevented effective coordination between the two flights. The controller managing the specific sector failed to maintain accurate positional data for both aircraft, yet still authorized the descent of the Tupolev TU-134 into a flight path occupied by the climbing Antonov AN-26. Additionally, the supervisory air traffic controller was found responsible for failing to monitor operations closely enough to detect the conflict and implement corrective measures.