The crash of Tu-124 near Murmansk (1965)

Tu-124V with the tail number of the USSR-45086 (serial number 5351801, serial number 18-01) was released by KHAPP on August 21, 1965 , that is, it was completely new. For two months of operation, the liner had 357 flight hours and 300 landings ^[1] . Its cabin had a capacity of 56 passengers. On September 13 of the same year, the aircraft arrived at the Main Directorate of the Civil Air Fleet and was sent to the Leningrad Air Squad of the Northern (later - Leningrad) DirectorateGVF .

On that day, the airliner piloted a crew of the 205th flight detachment consisting of commander D. S. Neklyudov, co-pilot D. A. Kuneshov, navigator Yu. M. Vishnev, flight engineer V. I. Romanov, and flight engineer F. I. Petrov. The stewardess A.E. Artsybasheva worked in the cabin. The dispatcher Chistyakov flew as an additional crew member. Onboard there were 57 passengers. At 14:21, the plane took off from the Leningrad Shosseinaya airport and after lifting it took up a train of 10,000 meters ^[2] .

Over Murmansk, the sky was covered with torn cumulus clouds with gaps, the lower boundary of about 200-300 meters, there was a polar night . At 15:50, 7 minutes before the estimated time of landing, the crew of the Murmansk airport Kilpjavr (Kilp-Yavr) contacted the crew, who transmitted weather information (overcast with a lower border of 260 meters, snowfall, visibility 1500 meters) and instructed to decrease to 2400 meters. Soon he gave the command to lower to 700 meters, and also gave instructions for approaching with a magnetic course of 215 ° ^[2] .

When passing a height of 800 meters, the commander completed the fourth turn a little earlier, as a result of which he left it 800 meters earlier, but continued to decline. Located 7100 meters from the runway (runway) of the DPRM, the aircraft went 400 meters to the left. The crew drove down to a height of 180 meters to the BPRM , located 2400 meters from the strip, when the Tu-124 suddenly fell in heavy snow. However, the commander did not stop reducing the liner. At this time, the dispatcher contacted the crew and mistakenly called the wrong distance to the airport - 2800 meters, and also that they flew the BPRM . Glancing at the ground, the aircraft commander in the dark saw the lights, which he took for the beginning of the strip. However, in reality, these were the lights of the BPRM house, while before the strip there were two more kilometers. Not knowing the true situation, the commander increased the speed of descent to 8-9 m / s ^[2] .

At 15:57, flying 273 meters after the BPRM and not flying 2127 meters to the end of the runway , the Tu-124 hit the ice of Lake Kilpjavr , located between the BPRM and the airfield . The left half wing was torn from the impact, after which the plane turned around and began to drag along the ice. At 347 meters from the point of first strike at the fuselage, the pilot’s cockpit was torn off, which was carried 166 meters to the side. Also torn off and the right wing. Having glided over the ice 565 meters from the site of the first strike, the fuselage finally stopped, after which, breaking the ice, it began to quickly sink. The pilot's cabin also began to sink. Soldiers came running from the BPRM building, who began to help passengers get out. However, 32 people died in the crash: 30 passengers and 2 crew members ( navigator and dispatcher ) ^[2] .

The main reason is the crew’s violation of the approach approach in difficult weather conditions, as a result of which the Tu-124 was lower than the landing trajectory. Under the circumstances, the crew must interrupt the landing and go to the second round . Another reason for the disaster was the carelessness of an inexperienced dispatcher, who called the incorrect removal of the aircraft from the airport, which misinformed the crew. The airport was not equipped with a course-glide path system and approach lights between the BPRM and the runway; in the BPRM area, weather monitoring was not carried out ^[2] .