Accident
The aircraft, a Yakovlev Yak-40, was cleared for takeoff from Tashkent-Yuzhny Airport and began its departure. After liftoff, while climbing to an altitude between 15 and 20 meters at a speed of 230 km/h, the aircraft banked left, lost altitude, and crashed, bursting into flames. The aircraft was destroyed, and all nine occupants—five passengers and four crew members—were killed. The flight was en route to Shakhrisabz, carrying a load of 1,200 kilograms of mail and various goods.
Probable Cause
According to the official investigation, the loss of control during initial climb was a consequence of wake turbulence generated by an Ilyushin II-76 (registration CCCP-76482) that had departed from the same runway just before the Yak-40. The separation between the two takeoffs was determined to be only 81 seconds. Air traffic control was blamed for clearing the Yak-40's crew too early and failing to observe the minimum required separation between the two departures. Additionally, it was reported that the loading of cargo took longer than expected, causing the Yak-40's crew to hurry the departure and neglect several procedures.