Moskovia Airlines Flight 9675

Moskovia Airlines

Industry	Aviation
Headquarters	Moscow , Russia

Template:Infobox Aircraft accident Template:Wikinews On 26 May 2008, Moskovia Airlines Flight 9675, an An-12 cargo plane operated by Moskovia Airlines, crashed near Chelyabinsk, Russia. Shortly after departing for Perm, the flight returned due to an onboard fire and ultimately crashed approximately 11 kilometres (6.8 mi) from the airport, resulting in the deaths of all nine crew members.

Background

The aircraft involved bore the registration RA-12957 (cn 88345508) and was manufactured in 1968. Prior to the accident flight, it had delivered a shipment of cash from Moscow to Chelyabinsk. It was then operating empty under flight number GAI9675 en route to Perm Airport.

Flight

During pre-flight checks, the crew observed alerts indicating power supply failures on engines one and two but disregarded these warnings, as documented by the cockpit voice recorder (CVR):

• Flight radio operator: "Sanya." (engineer's name)
• Flight engineer: "Yes?"
• Flight radio operator: "Number two failed"
• Instructor pilot: "And number one too"
• Flight radio operator: "Alternator"
• A crew member: "Screw it"
• Flight radio operator: "Here we go"

The investigation concluded that the phrase "here we go" likely indicated that the radio operator had successfully restored power to the alternators.

The aircraft departed Runway 09 at 14:03. At 14:03:55, the captain inquired, "What's the matter?" The flight engineer replied, "doors open". It remains uncertain whether this referred to cargo or landing gear doors; however, the final report suggests it was probably the latter. Investigators confirmed that all doors were closed at impact and considered this false alarm an early indication of electrical issues aboard.

Six seconds later, another erroneous alert sounded: "Too low, gear", which is triggered only during descent despite the plane climbing at that moment.

At 14:04:09, cabin crew notified the pilots about a fire onboard.

• Captain: "Come on, have a quick look... take a look what's going on there"
• Flight radio operator: "Let's land maybe, or... OK, requesting"
• Captain: "Wait, wait"
• First officer: "My attitude indicator failed"
• Captain: "Got it, taking control"

At this point, the airplane was climbing at approximately 470 meters altitude while turning left. By 14:04:28, the captain chose to return to Chelyabinsk. The crew contacted air traffic control (ATC) requesting priority landing due to smoke inside the cockpit.

Weather conditions included a cloud ceiling between 90 and 100 meters and visibility around 1,100 meters. CVR transcripts revealed discussions about multiple system failures and numerous false alarms. The crew identified the fire source as originating from the cargo compartment and deliberated depressurizing the cabin. A trim failure warning activated at 14:07:15; by 14:08, indicators signaled engine detachment issues. The flight engineer cautioned operating throttles cautiously.

At 14:09:13, during a left turn, engine two became unstable. Shortly thereafter, several circuit breakers tripped. Engines one and two ceased functioning at 14:09:54 due to fuel starvation. Subsequently, both cockpit voice and flight data recorders experienced malfunctions.

At 14:10:21, with two engines still running, the captain initiated final approach turns. The airplane’s speed reduced to , which was the minimum allowed without deploying flaps. Engine three operated at roughly 20% power while engine four was throttled back to about 85%.

From 14:10:40 onward, the aircraft began banking sharply left up to approximately 32°. Descent commenced at 14:10:48. At 14:10:43, crew communicated with tower controllers stating: "Gromov 9675, on landi... turning to final, 400, approaching, continuing approach," marking their last transmission.

At an altitude of about 31 meters above ground level, the plane’s left wing struck a high-voltage power line before crashing into a field at around from Runway 09 at 14:10:56. The vertical descent rate upon impact was near .

Investigation

The inquiry determined that in the final fifteen seconds before impact, the flight crew was unable to control the ailerons effectively. Medical evaluations excluded pilot incapacitation from smoke inhalation, indicating that the inability to maneuver the ailerons stemmed from a mechanical failure triggered by the onboard fire.

Following the crash, a fire erupted at the site. Due to this blaze, investigators were unable to pinpoint the precise origin within the electrical system that initiated the accident. Although the flight data recorders sustained extensive damage, they remained partially recoverable.

The conclusive report identified these factors as causes of the incident:

The aviation accident involving An-12 aircraft with registration RA-12957 resulted from ground impact caused by loss of aircraft control, attributable to rupture of the aileron control cables during an emergency landing approach prompted by smoke presence in the cabin.

[...] The destruction of aileron control cables likely occurred due to intense heating of adjacent steel cables, leading to their failure under operational stress.

This heating was probably caused by an inflight fire affecting nearby power lines, as supported by cabin smoke reports, unexpected activation of multiple warning systems, equipment malfunctions, and failure of two engines.

Crew

The captain possessed 14,928 flight hours, while the navigator had accumulated 11,021 hours. Neither had any history of prior incidents.

See also

• Air Moorea Flight 1121
• Caspian Airlines Flight 7908
• Propair Flight 420, another case involving an inflight fire leading to wing failure.

External links

• A previous photograph of the aircraft involved in the crash
• Official investigation details from the commission's website
• Plane crash in Chelyabinsk results in nine fatalities
• Russian cargo plane crash kills nine
• Nine fatalities reported in Russian cargo plane accident