December 29, 2012 on the Kiev highway, having rolled out outside the landing strip located at the Vnukovo airport, and having broken all the protective barriers, the liner fell. As a result of the crash, five people were killed, three more were injured. There were a lot of guesses about the causes of the tragedy, but exhaustive information did not appear immediately, although it was very expected.
In this article, you will familiarize yourself with the causes of the tragedy, announced by the Interstate Aviation Committee, and find out how high the share of the human factor is in what happened.
Event that blew up the broadcast
“A plane crash!” Vnukovo, December 29! ” These words spread with lightning speed all over Russia and the world. Newspaper headlines and the hottest news in the media shouted the same thing. What really happened? How did this terrible event happen and what led to the tragedy? More than one specialist tried to answer these questions, and everyone expressed their own opinion. The main versions concerned possible technical malfunctions, a fire on board, and also the human factor was among the assumptions. The official statement appeared only two months after the tragedy.
Filling the gaps in knowledge
At 16:35 Moscow time on December 29, 2012, a plane crash occurred at Vnukovo Airport. The TU-204 airliner, owned by Red Wings, an airline from Russia, followed from Pardubice (Czech Republic). Before landing, the flight was not just normal, but even excellent. And just before the landing, problems arose. After a hard landing, the plane destroyed the defenses and flew directly to the track, which is characterized by a rather saturated and dense movement.
You need to know these names.
On board the airliner at the time the plane crash in Vnukovo, there were only 8 crew members. These are G. D. Shmelev - aircraft commander, E. I. Astashenkov - co-pilot, I. N. Fisenko - flight engineer, T. A. Penkina, E. M. Zhigalina, A. A. Izosimov, K. S. Baranova and D. Yu. Vinokurov - flight attendants. If you believe the data obtained after a lengthy investigation, then only one person from the entire crew was not fully competent and cheated on him.
How it was
On that day, as, in principle, on any day when disasters occur, no one expected trouble. The crew flew out of the Czech Republic, and on the Kiev highway, as usual, there was a very busy traffic. Many argue that the huge number of victims was avoided only through the intervention of higher forces. And how could it be otherwise if the liner, weighing more than 60 tons, falls onto a busy highway and falls into three parts? Victims are always scary, but, given the scale of what happened, they could be not only tens, but even hundreds of times more. Traffic on the highway was stopped for only a couple of hours. Thanks to the operational actions of the Ministry of Emergencies, it was quickly restored.
The conclusion of the commission for the investigation of the crash
The Interstate Aviation Committee (IAC), which conducted an investigation into air crashes, announced and issued a verdict on what happened on March 3, 2014. It should be noted that not only specialists in this industry were involved in the work, but also the creators of aircraft of this type.
When the crash investigation took place, Tupolev OJSC, which produces the Tu-204, informed that this type of airliner may have problems with the brakes. This fact was recorded on December 21, 2012 in Tolmachevo, shortly before the tragedy in Vnukovo.
Irrefutable facts have become public. Now we know exactly what the Tu-204 plane crash in Vnukovo was predetermined by.
The IAC stated that the cause of the catastrophe was technical malfunctions in the reverse mechanism, moreover, on two engines at once, as well as incorrect crew actions, including their inconsistency in a critical situation.
Falsification of documents - the cause of death
While searching for the reasons that caused the plane crash in Vnukovo, the fact was revealed that the co-pilot provided a protocol to determine the level of linguistic competence and a certificate that were falsified. This terrible truth was subsequently confirmed by the rector of UVAU GA. The reason for a more detailed analysis of competence was the recording of conversations on the ship between the pilots during the introduction of the arrival scheme, as well as the lack of information from the co-pilot about speeding and angle of attack during approach.
Last minutes
According to data received from official sources, the crew commander landed. This also confirms the braking that was carried out on the left side. As a result, the reverse did not turn on, and the manual release of the interceptors was never made. And how could everything happen? In the event of the release of the spoilers, a mandatory compression of the landing gear would immediately occur, the reverse would turn on and, as a result, the liner would be braked by the brakes on the main wheels. And that’s all! No disaster would be discussed and no threat to people's lives! Everyone would be alive! For some time the crew still tried to start the reverse, this led to a temporary start of the engines, and only with the help of stop cranes they were turned off. However, all efforts ultimately came to naught - the disaster, unfortunately, could not be avoided.
After making a hard landing, the liner crossed the runway and rammed the fence on the Kiev highway at a speed of 190 km / h, which entailed the collapse of the vessel into several parts. So there was a plane crash in Vnukovo.
Fortunately, not a single vehicle was damaged. The liner blocked the highway, thereby completely blocking traffic, forming large traffic jams, after only a few hours the traffic was restored, but not completely.
Who managed to stay alive
Regrettably, the plane crash in Vnukovo was not without casualties. Of the eight crew members, only three survived. This is A. A. Izosimov, flight attendant, K. S. Baranova, flight attendant, D. Yu. Vinokurov, flight attendant.
Unfortunately, these people died in a plane crash: T. A. Penkina, a flight attendant, died in a hospital due to injuries incompatible with life; E. M. Zhigalina - flight attendant, died in the Moscow city hospital; I.N. Fisenko - flight engineer, E.I. Astashenkov - co-pilot, were found dead by rescuers; G. D. Shmelev - the crew commander, was missing for some time, but soon his body was found near the crashed ship.
It is not easy enough to look for the true reasons and it is very simple to blame someone. Unfortunately, only after the tragedy can we argue that the crash could have been avoided, and only now we know what measures needed to be taken, but this is already a fait accompli. The worst thing is that people died in a plane crash, and human life cannot be returned. Take care of yourself!