Aeroflot Flight 821
Encyclopedia
Aeroflot Flight 821, operated by Aeroflot-Nord
in a service agreement with Aeroflot
and as its subsidiary, crashed on approach to Perm Airport on 14 September 2008 at 5:10 local time (UTC+06). All 82 passengers and 6 crew members were killed. A section of the Trans-Siberian Railway
was damaged by the crash.
Flight 821 is the most deadly accident involving a Boeing 737-500 to date, surpassing the 1993 crash of Asiana Airlines Flight 733
.
The main reason for the crash was that both pilots had lost spatial orientation
due to their lack of proficiency with the Western type of attitude indicator
on the aircraft. Fatigue from lack of adequate rest, poor CRM
and alcohol in the Captain's tissues also contributed to the accident.
This air disaster resulted in the rebranding of Aeroflot-Nord into Nordavia, effective on 1 December 2009.
but operating as Aeroflot
flight SU821 from Moscow
's Sheremetyevo International Airport
to Perm
(Russia) crashed into a railway line southwest of Perm 5:10 AM local time (or 13 September 2008, 23:10 PM UTC). The weather at the time of accident was rainy and foggy (unbroken clouds at 240m, light rain). City police said the crew attempted emergency landing due to an engine failure.
According to an interview given by the air traffic controller shortly after the disaster, the crew did not respond correctly to ATC commands: after going around, it turned eastward instead of turning westward. However, the crew reported no emergency onboard and confirmed all commands given by ATC. At 5:10 AM, radio contact with the plane was lost; minutes later it crashed in the outskirts of Perm.
Aeroflot-Nord officially stated that: "The Boeing-737 carried 82 passengers on board — including 7 children — and 6 crew... All passengers were killed. As the plane was coming in for landing, it lost communication at the height of 1100 metres (3,608.9 ft) and air controllers lost its blip. The airplane was found within Perm's city limits completely destroyed and on fire." Investigator Vladimir Markin said that "there were 82 passengers plus a baby and 5 crew on board, and by preliminary information, they are all dead as the airplane fell into a ravine
near the city limits." RIA Novosti however reported that "it was possible that 3 people who bought a ticket for the ill-fated flight 821 to Perm did not get on board."
Both flight recorder
s were found and successfully decoded. The airline stated "it pledged to pay compensation on obligatory accident insurance in full, which would make up to 2 million rubles per victim." The crash damaged and shut down a section of the Trans-Siberian Railway
; rail traffic was temporarily re-routed via Chusovaya
station, and was restored by the evening of September 14. The aircraft was leased by Aeroflot-Nord from Dublin-based Pinewatch Limited from July 2008 to March 2013.
It was reported that its engines caught fire at an altitude of 1000 metres (3,280.8 ft). Eyewitness reports stated that the plane was visibly on fire prior to crashing, and hit the ground at a 30-40 degree angle. However, the low clouds (at 240m) must have prevented any witnesses from seeing the plane for more than a few seconds and the report was subsequently discounted by the accident enquiry (see below).
The final enquiry report stated that "after the base turn, approaching the landing course at 600 m with both autopilot and autothrottle disengaged, the aircraft started climbing up to 1300 m, rolled 360° over the left wing and collided with the ground".
The aircraft involved in the crash was delivered on September 8, 1992 to Braathens
, and was operated by China Southwest Airlines
subsidiary Xiamen Airlines
from September 1992 to March 1993. The 737 was then operated by China Southwest Airlines itself until the airline merged with Air China
, who operated the aircraft from March 2003 until it was stored in March 2008. Aeroflot-Nord leased the aircraft from Pinewatch Limited, and had operated it since May 29, 2008. Pinewatch was incorporated in 1995.
, the Federal Aviation Authority, and Boeing
. As the aircraft was registered in Bermuda, that government was represented by the UK's Air Accident Investigation Branch. The engines were made in France, so that state was represented by the Bureau d'Enquêtes et d'Analyses pour la sécurité de l'Aviation Civile
(BEA).
According to the data in flight recorders, the engines did not catch fire and continued working until the impact. The latest official reports are published in Russian on the Air Accident Investigation Commission website. An English translation of the final report is available at the United Kingdom Air Accidents Investigation Branch
website; the AAIB states that it is not an official English translation.
The final investigation report stated the following reasons for the crash:
and Moskva Insurance Company for 7.7 million rubles (approximately US$300,000) in punitive damages
.
But instead of descending to land, the plane then went up. ATC controller noticed this also and reportedly radioed the aircraft with this message: "According to my data, you are climbing. Confirm current altitude 900m." The aircraft should have been at an altitude of 600m at that time to descend further 300m. The pilot replied "Affirmative, we are descending" and initiated a climb to about 1200m, at which point he could no longer catch the glideslope. The controller instructed the pilot to turn right and go around. The pilot acknowledged but did not execute this instruction - instead, he turned left and asked to continue his approach. The controller asked whether everything was all right; the pilots confirmed that it was. The controller then insisted that the aircraft circle, instructing them to switch to another ATC controller. The pilots, however, never contacted the other ATC and started to descend quickly. When they were at about 600m, the controller radioed the plane to maintain 600m. The only thing he heard from pilots was "Aaa shit
!" A moment later the controller saw the explosion in the outskirts of the city.
representatives, the crew was described as very experienced and one of the best in the company. Captain Rodion Medvedev had a flight record of 3689 hours while First Officer Rustam Allaberdin had 8713. Later it was revealed that Medvedev's flight record as a captain was 452 hours and that Allaberdin's experience of Boeing 737's piloting was just 219 hours. For the most part of their careers Medvedev and Allaberdin were piloting Tu-134 and An-2 respectively.
Gennady Kurzenkov, head of the State Aviation Inspection Service, stated that the flight crew submitted falsified documents to the airline showing that they had passed preflight courses. Investigation commission experts also found traces of alcohol in samples of Captain Medvedev's remains.
Aeroflot-Nord
JSC "Nordavia" , formerly known as Aeroflot-Nord is an airline with its head office on the grounds of Talagi Airport in Arkhangelsk, Russia. It operates mainly scheduled domestic and regional services...
in a service agreement with Aeroflot
Aeroflot
OJSC AeroflotRussian Airlines , commonly known as Aeroflot , is the flag carrier and largest airline of the Russian Federation, based on passengers carried per year...
and as its subsidiary, crashed on approach to Perm Airport on 14 September 2008 at 5:10 local time (UTC+06). All 82 passengers and 6 crew members were killed. A section of the Trans-Siberian Railway
Trans-Siberian Railway
The Trans-Siberian Railway is a network of railways connecting Moscow with the Russian Far East and the Sea of Japan. It is the longest railway in the world...
was damaged by the crash.
Flight 821 is the most deadly accident involving a Boeing 737-500 to date, surpassing the 1993 crash of Asiana Airlines Flight 733
Asiana Airlines Flight 733
Asiana Air Flight 733 was an Asiana Airlines passenger flight between Seoul, South Korea and Mokpo that crashed into Mt. Ungeo at 800 feet on July 26, 1993...
.
The main reason for the crash was that both pilots had lost spatial orientation
Spatial disorientation
Spatial disorientation is the inability to correctly interpret aircraft attitude, altitude or airspeed, in relation to the Earth or point of reference. Spatial disorientation is a condition in which an aircraft pilot's perception of direction does not agree with reality...
due to their lack of proficiency with the Western type of attitude indicator
Attitude indicator
An attitude indicator , also known as gyro horizon or artificial horizon, is an instrument used in an aircraft to inform the pilot of the orientation of the aircraft relative to earth. It indicates pitch and bank or roll and is a primary instrument for flight in instrument meteorological conditions...
on the aircraft. Fatigue from lack of adequate rest, poor CRM
Crew Resource Management
Crew resource management or Cockpit resource management is a procedure and training system in systems where human error can have devastating effects. Used primarily for improving air safety, CRM focuses on interpersonal communication, leadership, and decision making in the cockpit...
and alcohol in the Captain's tissues also contributed to the accident.
This air disaster resulted in the rebranding of Aeroflot-Nord into Nordavia, effective on 1 December 2009.
Accident
The Boeing 737-505, registration VP-BKO, an aircraft belonging to the Aeroflot subsidiary Aeroflot-NordAeroflot-Nord
JSC "Nordavia" , formerly known as Aeroflot-Nord is an airline with its head office on the grounds of Talagi Airport in Arkhangelsk, Russia. It operates mainly scheduled domestic and regional services...
but operating as Aeroflot
Aeroflot
OJSC AeroflotRussian Airlines , commonly known as Aeroflot , is the flag carrier and largest airline of the Russian Federation, based on passengers carried per year...
flight SU821 from Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
's Sheremetyevo International Airport
Sheremetyevo International Airport
Sheremetyevo International Airport , is an international airport located in the Moscow Oblast, Russia, north-west of central Moscow. It is a hub for the passenger operations of the Russian international airline Aeroflot, and one of the three major airports serving Moscow along with Domodedovo...
to Perm
Perm
Perm is a city and the administrative center of Perm Krai, Russia, located on the banks of the Kama River, in the European part of Russia near the Ural Mountains. From 1940 to 1957 it was named Molotov ....
(Russia) crashed into a railway line southwest of Perm 5:10 AM local time (or 13 September 2008, 23:10 PM UTC). The weather at the time of accident was rainy and foggy (unbroken clouds at 240m, light rain). City police said the crew attempted emergency landing due to an engine failure.
According to an interview given by the air traffic controller shortly after the disaster, the crew did not respond correctly to ATC commands: after going around, it turned eastward instead of turning westward. However, the crew reported no emergency onboard and confirmed all commands given by ATC. At 5:10 AM, radio contact with the plane was lost; minutes later it crashed in the outskirts of Perm.
Aeroflot-Nord officially stated that: "The Boeing-737 carried 82 passengers on board — including 7 children — and 6 crew... All passengers were killed. As the plane was coming in for landing, it lost communication at the height of 1100 metres (3,608.9 ft) and air controllers lost its blip. The airplane was found within Perm's city limits completely destroyed and on fire." Investigator Vladimir Markin said that "there were 82 passengers plus a baby and 5 crew on board, and by preliminary information, they are all dead as the airplane fell into a ravine
Ravine
A ravine is a landform narrower than a canyon and is often the product of streamcutting erosion. Ravines are typically classified as larger in scale than gullies, although smaller than valleys. A ravine is generally a fluvial slope landform of relatively steep sides, on the order of twenty to...
near the city limits." RIA Novosti however reported that "it was possible that 3 people who bought a ticket for the ill-fated flight 821 to Perm did not get on board."
Both flight recorder
Flight recorder
A flight recorder is an electronic recording device placed in an aircraft for the purpose of facilitating the investigation of an aircraft accident or incident. For this reason, flight recorders are required to be capable of surviving the conditions likely to be encountered in a severe aircraft...
s were found and successfully decoded. The airline stated "it pledged to pay compensation on obligatory accident insurance in full, which would make up to 2 million rubles per victim." The crash damaged and shut down a section of the Trans-Siberian Railway
Trans-Siberian Railway
The Trans-Siberian Railway is a network of railways connecting Moscow with the Russian Far East and the Sea of Japan. It is the longest railway in the world...
; rail traffic was temporarily re-routed via Chusovaya
Chusovoy
Chusovoy is a town in Perm Krai, Russia, located east of Perm, at the confluence of the Usva and Vilva Rivers with the Chusovaya River. Population: -History and economy:...
station, and was restored by the evening of September 14. The aircraft was leased by Aeroflot-Nord from Dublin-based Pinewatch Limited from July 2008 to March 2013.
It was reported that its engines caught fire at an altitude of 1000 metres (3,280.8 ft). Eyewitness reports stated that the plane was visibly on fire prior to crashing, and hit the ground at a 30-40 degree angle. However, the low clouds (at 240m) must have prevented any witnesses from seeing the plane for more than a few seconds and the report was subsequently discounted by the accident enquiry (see below).
The final enquiry report stated that "after the base turn, approaching the landing course at 600 m with both autopilot and autothrottle disengaged, the aircraft started climbing up to 1300 m, rolled 360° over the left wing and collided with the ground".
The aircraft involved in the crash was delivered on September 8, 1992 to Braathens
Braathens
Braathens ASA, until 1997 Braathens South American & Far East Airtransport A/S and trading as Braathens SAFE, is a former Norwegian airline that operated from 1946 until it merged with Scandinavian Airlines Norway to become SAS Braathens in 2004. The airline was based in Oslo, first at Fornebu,...
, and was operated by China Southwest Airlines
China Southwest Airlines
China Southwest Airlines was an airline based in the People's Republic of China. It was merged into Air China in 2002.China Southwest Airlines was headquartered at Chengdu, Sichuan Province and also maintained a hub at Chongqing. The airline was the sole carrier flying to Lhasa until 2002...
subsidiary Xiamen Airlines
Xiamen Airlines
Xiamen Airlines is the first privately owned airline in the People's Republic of China. Established on July 25, 1984 and based in Xiamen, it operates scheduled passenger flights out of Xiamen Gaoqi International Airport and, to a lesser extent, Fuzhou Changle International Airport...
from September 1992 to March 1993. The 737 was then operated by China Southwest Airlines itself until the airline merged with Air China
Air China
Air China is the flag carrier and one of the major airlines of the People's Republic of China. Based in Beijing Capital International Airport, Air China is the world's 10th largest airline by fleet size. The airline ranked behind its main competitors China Southern Airlines and China Eastern...
, who operated the aircraft from March 2003 until it was stored in March 2008. Aeroflot-Nord leased the aircraft from Pinewatch Limited, and had operated it since May 29, 2008. Pinewatch was incorporated in 1995.
Investigation
Russia's Air Accident Investigation Commission of the Interstate Aviation Committee led the investigation, with US assistance from the National Transportation Safety BoardNational Transportation Safety Board
The National Transportation Safety Board is an independent U.S. government investigative agency responsible for civil transportation accident investigation. In this role, the NTSB investigates and reports on aviation accidents and incidents, certain types of highway crashes, ship and marine...
, the Federal Aviation Authority, and Boeing
Boeing
The Boeing Company is an American multinational aerospace and defense corporation, founded in 1916 by William E. Boeing in Seattle, Washington. Boeing has expanded over the years, merging with McDonnell Douglas in 1997. Boeing Corporate headquarters has been in Chicago, Illinois since 2001...
. As the aircraft was registered in Bermuda, that government was represented by the UK's Air Accident Investigation Branch. The engines were made in France, so that state was represented by the Bureau d'Enquêtes et d'Analyses pour la sécurité de l'Aviation Civile
Bureau d'Enquêtes et d'Analyses pour la sécurité de l'Aviation Civile
The Bureau d'Enquêtes et d'Analyses pour la Sécurité de l'Aviation Civile is an agency of the French government, responsible for investigating aviation accidents and making safety recommendations based on what is learned from those investigations. It is headquartered in Building 153 on the grounds...
(BEA).
According to the data in flight recorders, the engines did not catch fire and continued working until the impact. The latest official reports are published in Russian on the Air Accident Investigation Commission website. An English translation of the final report is available at the United Kingdom Air Accidents Investigation Branch
Air Accidents Investigation Branch
The Air Accidents Investigation Branch investigates air accidents in the United Kingdom. It is a branch of the Department for Transport and is based on the grounds of Farnborough Airport near Aldershot, Rushmoor, Hampshire.-History:...
website; the AAIB states that it is not an official English translation.
The final investigation report stated the following reasons for the crash:
- The immediate cause of the accident was the loss of spatial orientation by the crew and chiefly by the Captain who was piloting the aircraft during the landing phase. The plane banked left, overturned and went into a rapid descent. The loss of spatial orientation occurred in the night, while flying in the clouds, with autopilot and autothrottle switched off. Poor CRM and insufficient training for using the Western type of attitude indicatorAttitude indicatorAn attitude indicator , also known as gyro horizon or artificial horizon, is an instrument used in an aircraft to inform the pilot of the orientation of the aircraft relative to earth. It indicates pitch and bank or roll and is a primary instrument for flight in instrument meteorological conditions...
s have contributed to the accident. The pilots had previously flown Tupolev Tu-134Tupolev Tu-134The Tupolev Tu-134 is a twin-engined airliner, similar to the American Douglas DC-9 and the French Sud Aviation Caravelle, and built in the Soviet Union from 1966–1984. The original version featured a glazed-nose design and, like certain other Russian airliners , it can operate from unpaved...
and Antonov An-2Antonov An-2The Antonov An-2 is a single-engine biplane utility/agricultural aircraft designed in the USSR in 1946...
with a different type of attitude indicator (where the bank angle is shown by the movements of an aircraft symbol, and the indicator's background does not turn left or right). - Inadequate practices by Aeroflot-Nord in managing and operating the Boeing 737 aircraft.
- The aircraft had been flown for a long time with a throttle problem. The pilots had a higher workload because they had to operate the throttle levers for the left and right engines independently.
- Forensic examination found an unspecified amount of alcohol in the captain's tissue. He also did not have adequate rest before the flight.
Lawsuit
On 1 October 2008, the mother of a 27-year-old female passenger who died in the accident sued AeroflotAeroflot
OJSC AeroflotRussian Airlines , commonly known as Aeroflot , is the flag carrier and largest airline of the Russian Federation, based on passengers carried per year...
and Moskva Insurance Company for 7.7 million rubles (approximately US$300,000) in punitive damages
Punitive damages
Punitive damages or exemplary damages are damages intended to reform or deter the defendant and others from engaging in conduct similar to that which formed the basis of the lawsuit...
.
Last minutes of the flight
Irek Birbov, the ATC controller on duty the night of the incident gave an interview where he told about his communication with Flight 821. He said that on final approach the aircraft was too far right of the landing course, and the controller informed the pilot about that, who corrected the approach course.But instead of descending to land, the plane then went up. ATC controller noticed this also and reportedly radioed the aircraft with this message: "According to my data, you are climbing. Confirm current altitude 900m." The aircraft should have been at an altitude of 600m at that time to descend further 300m. The pilot replied "Affirmative, we are descending" and initiated a climb to about 1200m, at which point he could no longer catch the glideslope. The controller instructed the pilot to turn right and go around. The pilot acknowledged but did not execute this instruction - instead, he turned left and asked to continue his approach. The controller asked whether everything was all right; the pilots confirmed that it was. The controller then insisted that the aircraft circle, instructing them to switch to another ATC controller. The pilots, however, never contacted the other ATC and started to descend quickly. When they were at about 600m, the controller radioed the plane to maintain 600m. The only thing he heard from pilots was "Aaa shit
Shit
Shit is usually considered vulgar and profane in Modern English. As a noun it refers to fecal matter and as a verb it means to defecate or defecate in; in the plural it means diarrhea...
!" A moment later the controller saw the explosion in the outskirts of the city.
Crew
According to early claims of Aeroflot-NordAeroflot-Nord
JSC "Nordavia" , formerly known as Aeroflot-Nord is an airline with its head office on the grounds of Talagi Airport in Arkhangelsk, Russia. It operates mainly scheduled domestic and regional services...
representatives, the crew was described as very experienced and one of the best in the company. Captain Rodion Medvedev had a flight record of 3689 hours while First Officer Rustam Allaberdin had 8713. Later it was revealed that Medvedev's flight record as a captain was 452 hours and that Allaberdin's experience of Boeing 737's piloting was just 219 hours. For the most part of their careers Medvedev and Allaberdin were piloting Tu-134 and An-2 respectively.
Gennady Kurzenkov, head of the State Aviation Inspection Service, stated that the flight crew submitted falsified documents to the airline showing that they had passed preflight courses. Investigation commission experts also found traces of alcohol in samples of Captain Medvedev's remains.
Casualties
| Nationality | Casualties |
|---|---|
 Russia |
66 |
 Azerbaijan |
8 |
 Ukraine |
5 |
 Belarus |
1 |
 People's Republic of China |
1 |
 Early Modern France |
2 |
 Germany |
1 |
 Italy |
1 |
 Latvia |
1 |
 Turkey |
1 |
 Uzbekistan |
1 |
| Total | 88 |
Notable death
- Gennady TroshevGennady TroshevGennady Nikolayevich Troshev was a Russian Colonel General in the Russian military and formerly the commander of the North Caucasus Military District, including Chechnya, during the Second Chechen War...
, Colonel GeneralColonel GeneralColonel General is a senior rank of General. North Korea and Russia are two countries which have used the rank extensively throughout their histories...
in the Russian military, formerly the commander of the North Caucasus Military DistrictNorth Caucasus Military DistrictThe North Caucasus Military District was a military district of the Russian Ground Forces, which became in 2010 the Southern Military District and lately also includes the Black Sea Fleet and Caspian Flotilla....
(including ChechnyaChechnyaThe Chechen Republic , commonly referred to as Chechnya , also spelled Chechnia or Chechenia, sometimes referred to as Ichkeria , is a federal subject of Russia . It is located in the southeastern part of Europe in the Northern Caucasus mountains. The capital of the republic is the city of Grozny...
) during the Second Chechen WarSecond Chechen WarThe Second Chechen War, in a later phase better known as the War in the North Caucasus, was launched by the Russian Federation starting 26 August 1999, in response to the Invasion of Dagestan by the Islamic International Peacekeeping Brigade ....
and adviser to the President of Russia.
Further reading
- Unofficial English translation of final accident report at UK Air Accidents Investigation Branch website
- Aeroflot Nord press release (Russian)
- Flash Airlines Flight 604Flash Airlines flight 604Flash Airlines Flight 604 was a charter flight operated by Egyptian charter company Flash Airlines. On 3 January 2004, the Boeing 737-300 crashed into the Red Sea shortly after takeoff from Sharm el-Sheikh International Airport, killing all 142 passengers, many of them French tourists, and all six...
External links
- Final accident report - Interstate Aviation Committee - Unofficial English version - Hosted by the Air Accidents Investigation BranchAir Accidents Investigation BranchThe Air Accidents Investigation Branch investigates air accidents in the United Kingdom. It is a branch of the Department for Transport and is based on the grounds of Farnborough Airport near Aldershot, Rushmoor, Hampshire.-History:...
(AAIB) (Archive) - Investigation (Archive) - Interstate Aviation Committee
- Lenta.ru page listing passengers of the flight
- Aeroflot news archive
- Aeroflot page listing passengers of the flight