Aeroflot Flight 964

Aeroflot Flight 964

Industry	Aviation
Founded	October 13, 1973 (1973-10-13)
Headquarters	Moscow , Soviet Union

Template:Infobox Aircraft accident

Aeroflot Flight 964 was a scheduled service operated by Aeroflot between Kutaisi Airport in Georgia and Domodedovo Airport in Moscow, Russian SFSR. On October 13, 1973, the Tupolev Tu-104 assigned to this route crashed during its final approach to Moscow, resulting in the loss of all 122 individuals on board. This incident remains the deadliest involving a Tupolev Tu-104.

Aircraft

The airplane implicated in the accident was a Tupolev Tu-104B registered as CCCP-42486 under Aeroflot’s Georgian division. Initially configured with seating for 100 passengers, the interior was later modified to accommodate 115 seats. At the time of the crash, the airframe had accumulated 16,250 flight hours and undergone 9,776 pressurization cycles.

Crew

There were eight crew members present on this flight. The cockpit team included:Template:Fix/category

• Captain Georgy Iraklievich Kurtsidze (pilot in command)
• Co-pilot Karmen Semenovich Ratiani (first officer)
• Navigator Boris Grigorievich Yegoyan
• Flight Engineer Devi Alexandrovich Zakariadze
• Radio Operator Gurami Georgievich Lominadze

In addition, two flight attendants, R.K. Nubarova and D.I. Rusova, served in the cabin alongside an officer from the Ministry of Internal Affairs who was monitoring the journey.

Synopsis

The flight took off from Kutaisi Airport at 18:10 local time carrying 114 passengers; notably, eight of these individuals had boarded without authorization. At 19:52, control of the aircraft was transferred to Moscow air traffic controllers. At precisely 20:12:55, clearance was granted for descent to an altitude of 400 metres (1,300 ft). Twenty-six seconds afterward, the aircraft's position was reported at approximately 11 kilometres (6.8 mi; 5.9 nmi) from Domodedovo at an altitude near 900 metres (3,000 ft). At 20:13:28, the crew communicated that their heading was 317°, which was opposite the runway direction. By 20:15:55, while maintaining an altitude of about 900 metres, pilots reported compass malfunctions to air traffic control.

At 20:16:25, with landing gear deployed and traveling at speeds between 380–400 kilometres per hour (210–220 kn; 240–250 mph), and roughly 19 kilometres (12 mi; 10 nmi) from the runway threshold, the aircraft initiated a third right-hand turn as part of its approach sequence. No further radio contact was established after this point.

Visibility conditions that evening were approximately 2,400 metres (2.4 km; 1.5 mi). During the approach phase on a heading of 143°, the crew experienced spatial disorientation causing them to enter a leftward spin. The aircraft ultimately impacted terrain in a field located about 16 kilometres (9.9 mi; 8.6 nmi) northwest of Domodedovo Airport (approximately 19.6 kilometres (12.2 mi; 10.6 nmi) from the airport reference point), colliding with several power lines en route. The debris field extended roughly 248 by 180 metres (814 by 591 ft; 271 by 197 yd). All passengers and crew aboard—114 and eight respectively—perished in the crash.

Causes

The investigation determined that following the aircraft's initial right turn, during which the bank angle surpassed 40°, several key navigation instruments—including the compass and artificial horizon—ceased functioning. Due to limited visibility conditions at the airport, the flight crew became disoriented spatially and were unable to identify any external visual references to establish their location. When the aircraft veered slightly to the right, the pilots attempted to correct this by countering the right bank, inadvertently inducing a steep left bank that reached approximately 70°, ultimately leading to the crash.

See also

• Aeroflot Flight 1912, a Tupolev Tu-104 accident resulting from comparable mechanical malfunctions.
• Aeroflot Flight 2415, another Tupolev Tu-104 that crashed during takeoff after a similar artificial horizon failure.
• Aeroflot Flight 3932, also involving a Tupolev Tu-104, which crashed on approach to Moscow due to failures in both compass and artificial horizon instruments.
• Flash Airlines Flight 604