Aeroflot Flight 3603

Aeroflot Flight 3603

An Aeroflot Tupolev Tu-154 similar to the one that crashed
Accident
Date	17 November 1981 (1981-11-17)
Summary	Controlled flight into terrain due to pilot error
Site	Noril'sk Airport, Noril'sk, Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic, Soviet Union 69°17′37.68″N 87°18′2.52″E / 69.2938000°N 87.3007000°E / 69.2938000; 87.3007000
Aircraft
Aircraft type	Tupolev Tu-154B-2
Operator	Aeroflot
Registration	CCCP-85480
Flight origin	Krasnoyarsk Airport
Destination	Noril'sk Airport
Occupants	167
Passengers	160
Crew	7
Fatalities	99
Survivors	68

Aeroflot Flight 3603 was a Tupolev Tu-154 operating a scheduled domestic passenger flight from Krasnoyarsk to Noril'sk, both in the Soviet Union, that crashed while attempting to land on 17 November 1981. Of the 167 passengers and crew on board, 99 were killed in the accident.^[1]

Accident

It was dark and there was a low overcast with a cloud base of around 400 feet (120 m) when the Tupolev Tu-154 began its approach to Noril'sk Airport. The aircraft was about 5,000 pounds (2,300 kg) above its calculated weight and its center of gravity was beyond the forward limit for the type. The nose heavy condition caused Flight 3603 to descend below the glide path as it made its final approach. The Captain initiated a go-around maneuver but the aeroplane impacted terrain approximately 1,500 feet (460 m) short of the runway, striking a mound in an open field and sliding across the frozen ground for about 300 m .^[2] Four crew members and 95 passengers were killed in the accident.^[3]

Causes

The primary cause of the accident was the failure of the crew to accurately calculate the appropriate landing weight, failing to align with the runway at the proper approach speed, failing to abort the landing and go-around in time, and failing to maintain control of the auto-throttle.^[4]

References