Date:	Wednesday 16 March 2005
Time:	13:53
Type:	Antonov An-24RV
Owner/operator:	Regional Airlines
Registration:	RA-46489
MSN:	27308107
Year of manufacture:	1972
Engine model:	Ivchenko AI-24VT
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 28 / Occupants: 52
Aircraft damage:	Destroyed, written off
Category:	Accident
Location:	4,2 km from Varandey Airport (VRI) -   Russia
Phase:	Approach
Nature:	Passenger - Non-Scheduled/charter/Air Taxi
Departure airport:	Usinsk Airport (USK/UUYS)
Destination airport:	Varandey Airport (VRI/ULDW)
Confidence Rating:	Accident investigation report completed and information captured

Narrative:
The aircraft operated on a flight from Ufa to Usinsk and Varandey. On the last leg of the flight, the pilots attempted a VFR approach, which was not permitted for this airport. The aircraft descended, below the glide slope as the crew mistook the motorway for the runway. They entered a sideslip for more than 20 seconds when the pilot tried to align with the 'runway' causing the aircraft to lose speed. A stall developed at a height of 26 metres and the left wing struck a sand heap 4217 metres before the runway threshold causing the aircraft to crash 30 metres further on.

The Commission found that the cause of the crash was the collision of the aircraft with the ground at the final stage of the approach due to its exit to the overcritical angles of attack and the stalling regime (an off-flight flight regime) at low altitude.
The deceleration of the aircraft to the stall speed was due to its withdrawal, as a result of the control actions of the commander of the aircraft, to the flight mode with slip and maintaining this mode for a long time (more than 20 seconds) with insufficient engine operation and lack of control by the crew of the airspeed.
Possible errors in the indications of a number of instruments (speed indicators, angle of attack indicator) could make it difficult for crew members to control flight parameters.

Aviatsiya.ru
Gazeta.ru
Michael Roch
Russian Ministry of Transport
RIA Novosti
ITAR-TASS

photo (c) Reynold Camilleri; Yakutsk Airport (YKS); 12 August 2003

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