Utair Flight 579

Utair Flight 579
VQ-BJI, the aircraft involved in the accident, pictured in 2013
Accident
Date 1 September 2018 (2018-09-01)
Summary Runway overrun, under investigation
Site Sochi International Airport, Sochi, Russia
43°27′07″N 39°57′39″E / 43.451935°N 39.960957°E / 43.451935; 39.960957Coordinates: 43°27′07″N 39°57′39″E / 43.451935°N 39.960957°E / 43.451935; 39.960957
Total fatalities 1
Aircraft
Aircraft type Boeing 737-800
Operator Utair
Registration VQ-BJI
Flight origin Vnukovo International Airport, Moscow, Russia
Destination Sochi International Airport, Sochi, Russia
Occupants 170
Passengers 164
Crew 6
Fatalities 0
Injuries 18
Survivors 170 (all)
Ground casualties
Ground fatalities 1 (indirect)

On September 1, 2018, Utair Flight 579, a Boeing 737-800 on a scheduled domestic flight from Moscow to Sochi, Russia, with 164 passengers and 6 crew, overran the runway and caught fire while landing at Sochi, injuring 18 occupants. One airport employee died of a heart attack.[1][2]

Aircraft

The aircraft involved in the accident was a Boeing 737-8AS[lower-alpha 1] with serial number 29937 and Bermudan registration VQ-BJI. It was delivered in 2002 and after service with several other airlines was leased by Utair (then UTair) in 2011.[3]

Accident

The flight departed from Vnukovo Airport at 12:30 am local time with 164 passengers and six crew. The flight crew aborted the first two approaches to Sochi before committing to a third that resulted in the overrun. The aircraft touched down at 2:57 am and overran runway 06, came to rest on the bed of the Mzymta River and caught fire, prompting an evacuation.[4]

Eighteen occupants were injured; injuries included burns and carbon monoxide poisoning.[1] Transportation Minister Yevgeny Dietrich confirmed that an airport employee died of a heart attack during the emergency response.[5]

Thunderstorms were reported over Sochi at the time of the accident. The aircraft received damage to its belly, wings and engines.[3] The airport operator reported that the fire was extinguished within eight minutes.[5]

Investigation

An accident investigation was launched by the Interstate Aviation Committee (IAC) of Russia. Two days after the crash on September 3, the IAC reported that the flight recorders had been recovered from the aircraft, the data were retrieved successfully and would be analyzed. The committee completed examination of the accident site and was making preparations for moving the aircraft. The United States National Transportation Safety Board, representing the State of Design and State of Manufacture of the aircraft, and the United Kingdom's Air Accidents Investigation Branch, representing the State of Registry, were invited to participate in the investigation.[6]

The Investigative Committee of Russia also launched a probe into the crash, with a Southern Transport Department official stating that "a criminal investigation has been opened into the emergency landing ... on suspicion of inadequate services with a risk to clients' health."[7]

Notes

  1. ↑ The aircraft was a Boeing 737-800 model; Boeing formerly assigned a unique code for each company that bought one of its aircraft, which was applied as an infix to the model number; hence "737-8AS", designating a 737-800 ordered by Ryanair.

References

  1. 1 2 "Jet crashes on landing in Russian city". BBC News. 2018-09-01. Retrieved 2018-09-01.
  2. ↑ "Accident: UTAir B738 at Sochi on Sep 1st 2018, overran runway on landing". avherald.com. Retrieved 2018-09-01.
  3. 1 2 "Aircraft accident Boeing 737-8AS (WL) VQ-BJI Adler/Sochi Airport (AER)". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 2018-09-02.
  4. ↑ "Over a dozen injured after plane catches fire in Russia". New York Post. 2018-09-01. Retrieved 2018-09-01.
  5. 1 2 "Airport worker dies after plane's crash landing in Russia". 2018-09-01. Retrieved 2018-09-01.
  6. ↑ "Boeing 737-800 VQ-BJI 01.09.2018". МЕЖГОСУДАРСТВЕННЫЙ АВИАЦИОННЫЙ КОМИТЕТ.
  7. ↑ Sputnik. "At least 18 Injured as Passenger Plane Catches Fire During Landing in Sochi". sputniknews.com. Retrieved 2018-09-01.
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