Vladivostok Air Flight 352
RA-85845, the aircraft involved in the accident, while still in service with China Northwest Airlines in 1999 | |
| Accident | |
|---|---|
| Date | 4 July 2001 |
| Summary | Stalled on approach due to pilot error |
| Site | Burdakovka, Irkutsk Oblast, Russia 52°7.604′0″N 104°37.331′0″E / 52.12673°N 104.62218°E |
| Aircraft | |
| Aircraft type | Tupolev Tu-154M |
| Aircraft name | Ussuriysk |
| Operator | Vladivostok Air |
| IATA flight No. | XF352 |
| ICAO flight No. | VLK352 |
| Call sign | (85)845 |
| Registration | RA-85845 |
| Flight origin | Koltsovo International Airport, Sverdlovsk Oblast, Russia |
| Stopover | Irkutsk International Airport, Irkutsk Oblast, Russia |
| Destination | Vladivostok International Airport, Primorsky Krai, Russia |
| Occupants | 145 |
| Passengers | 136 |
| Crew | 9 |
| Fatalities | 145 |
| Survivors | 0 |
Vladivostok Air Flight 352 was a scheduled passenger flight from Yekaterinburg, Russia to Vladivostok via Irkutsk. On 4 July 2001, the aircraft operating the flight, a Tupolev Tu-154M with tail number RA-85845, lost control, stalled, and crashed while approaching Irkutsk Airport. All 136 passengers and 9 flight crew members aboard perished, making it the third deadliest aircraft crash over Russian territory to date after Aeroflot Flight 3352 and Aeroflot Flight 217.
Russian investigation committee MAK attributed the causes of the crash to pilot error. During the approach, the crew made erroneous input on the aircraft's yoke, causing the airspeed to deplete. A series of errors then caused the yoke to be excessively pulled, causing the aircraft to enter a corkscrew. The crew tried to recover but failed due to the aircraft's insufficient altitude.