Aeroflot Flight 6502

Template:Infobox aircraft occurrence Aeroflot Flight 6502 was a domestic passenger service within the Soviet Union, operated using a Tupolev Tu-134A aircraft traveling from Sverdlovsk (currently known as Yekaterinburg) to Grozny, with an intermediate stop at Kuibyshev (present-day Samara). On 20 October 1986, the plane crashed at Kuibyshev after overrunning the runway. The accident occurred following a reckless wager by the pilot, who attempted an approach relying solely on instruments while the cockpit windows were covered. The investigation concluded that pilot error was the primary cause of the crash.

Background

The flight crew aboard the Tu-134A with serial number 62327, which was produced on 28 June 1979, included Captain Alexander Kliuyev, First Officer Gennady Zhirnov, Navigator Ivan Mokhonko, Flight Engineer Kyuri Khamzatov, along with three cabin attendants. Departing from Koltsovo Airport in Yekaterinburg (formerly Sverdlovsk), Flight 6502 was en route to Grozny and scheduled to make a stopover at Kurumoch Airport in Samara (then called Kuibyshev).

Crash

During the final approach to Kurumoch Airport, Captain Kliuyev wagered with First Officer Zhirnov that he could perform an approach relying solely on instrument readings while the cockpit windows were covered, eliminating any visual reference to the terrain, rather than following the NDB approach recommended by air traffic control. Despite warnings from the ground-proximity alert at an altitude of approximately 62–65 metres (203–213 ft), Kliuyev disregarded the caution and did not execute the advised go-around. The airplane landed on the runway at a velocity of 150 knots (280 km/h; 170 mph) but subsequently overshot the runway, coming to rest inverted. The disaster resulted in 63 fatalities at the scene and an additional seven deaths in medical facilities. Among those on board were 14 children, all of whom survived. A confidential report from Kuibyshev oblispolkom chairman V. A. Pogodin to Premier Nikolai Ryzhkov presented slightly different statistics: out of 85 passengers and eight crew members, 53 passengers and five crew lost their lives immediately, with 11 more succumbing later in hospitals.

Although Zhirnov did not attempt to prevent the accident, he later endeavored to assist passengers and passed away from cardiac arrest en route to medical care. Captain Kliuyev faced legal consequences, receiving a 15-year prison sentence that was eventually reduced to six years served.

See also

• National Airlines Flight 27, an incident involving potential in-flight testing that may have led to an uncontained engine failure
• Northwest Airlines Flight 188, where the flight crew ceased active monitoring of the aircraft
• Pinnacle Airlines Flight 3701, a crash resulting from pilots deliberately exceeding aircraft operational limits for amusement
• Aeroflot Flight 593, an accident caused by allowing minors to operate the aircraft controls
• United Airlines Flight 2885, a crash occurring after the flight engineer was permitted to pilot the airplane