Aeroflot Flight 3603
![]() An Aeroflot Tupolev Tu-154 similar to the aircraft crash | |
Accident | |
---|---|
Date | 17 November 1981 |
Summary | CFIT, crew error |
Site | Noril'sk, Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic, Soviet Union |
Aircraft type | Tupolev Tu-154 |
Operator | Aeroflot |
Registration | CCCP-85480 |
Flight origin | Krasnoyarsk Airport |
Destination | Noril'sk Airport |
Passengers | 160 |
Crew | 7 |
Fatalities | 99 |
Survivors | 68 |
Aeroflot Flight 3603 was a Tupolev Tu-154 operating a scheduled domestic passenger flight from Krasnoyarsk to Noril'sk, both in the Soviet Union, that crashed while attempting to land on 17 November 1981. Of the 167 passengers and crew on board, 99 were killed in the accident.[1]
Accident
It was dark and there was a low overcast with a cloud base of around 400 feet when the Tupolev Tu-154 began its approach to Noril'sk Airport. The aircraft was about 5,000 pounds above its calculated weight and its center of gravity was beyond the forward limit for the type. The nose heavy condition caused Flight 3603 to descend through the glide path as it made its final approach. Flight 3603's captain initiated a go-around maneuver but the jetliner struck a mound approximately 1,500 feet short of the runway.[2] Four crew members plus 95 passengers were killed in the accident.[3]
References
- ^ Aeroflot Flight 3603. Airdisaster.com
- ^ Gero, David (1996). Aviation Disasters Second Edition. Patrick Stephens Limited. p. 167.
- ^ Tupolev 154B-2 CCCP-85480 Noril'sk Airport. Aviation Safety Network
- 1981 in the Soviet Union
- Aviation accidents and incidents in 1981
- Aviation accidents and incidents caused by pilot error
- Airliner accidents and incidents involving controlled flight into terrain
- Aviation accidents and incidents in the Soviet Union
- Accidents and incidents involving the Tupolev Tu-154
- Aeroflot accidents and incidents