Plane crash in Yaroslavl
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Plane crash in Yaroslavl

Plane crash in Yaroslavl. The hockey club Lokomotiv.

 

 

7 September 2011 years Yak-42 landing in Yaroslavlto take on board very important passengers. This charter flight is operated by Yak Service and only the crew is on board. The co-pilot - Igor Zhevelov is the company's deputy director for flight operations. By that time, he had been a pilot for almost 30 years, and during this time he had flown about 13000 hours. The aircraft commander - Andrew Solomentsev. He is a close friend of Igor Zhevelova. The third person in the cockpit - the flight engineer Vladimir Matyushin. The airplane also be Alexander Sizov - engineer ground handling electronic equipment.

 

Expert: The charter flights especially important to safely deliver people from the "A" point to point "B", and provide quality service. On this depends the reputation of the company, whether it will receive the order again.

 

            At Yaroslavl airport introduced special security measures. The most influential politicians of Russia came to the economic forum in the city. But it’s not politicians who are preparing to board the aircraft. These no less prestigious passengers are the team of the Lokomotiv Yaroslavsky hockey club.

 

Ice hockey: The "Locomotive" fantastic fans. They are able to shout down anyone and always support their team. Every time I came to this city, felt a special atmosphere. This is a true hockey town. They love this game.

 

Lokomotiv Yaroslavl plane crash video.

 

 

            Alexander Galimov - right-handed striker played his whole career for Lokomotiv. He was born in Yaroslavl, and was considered a real local hero. Head coach Brad McRiman was looking forward to the first game of the season. The team gathered some of the best Russian hockey players. One of them is team captain Nikolai Tkachenko. In the pre-season games, Lokomotiv was lucky. They won seven games out of nine. Therefore, fans are confident that this year the club has every chance to win the Gagarin Cup.

           

            As the company's deputy for flight work, Zhivelov took the opportunity to pilot the plane with his heroes on board. On this flight, the commander Solomentsev controlled the plane, and Zhivelov was responsible for radio communications.

 

Aircraft crash with the locomotive crew

 

            The crew launches three engines Yak-42 and set stabilizers in the take-off position. The plane is heading to the capital of Belarus, Minsk, two hours from Yaroslavl. For players, this is the first of many flights that they have to make this season. At almost four o'clock in the afternoon the plane began to run along the runway. Flight engineer watched the instruments. His task is to inform the commander when the plane picks up the take-off speed.

 

Expert: The speed of the aircraft depends on the thrust of the engines. If everything is done correctly and the flaps and slats are set correctly, then the lift generated by the speed will lift the aircraft off the ground, which usually happens.

 

            When takeoff speed was reached, the flight engineer told the commander to lift the plane. He pulled the steering wheel towards himself in order to turn the ailerons 10 degrees. This should have been enough for the plane to take off. However, he remained on the ground. Nothing has happened. The aircraft did not react to the steering wheel movement. The commander asked for full thrust, but again nothing happened. Even the adjustment of the stabilizers did not work. Instead of taking off, the plane continued to roll further out of the runway.

 

Expert: Pilots are a nightmare. The airplane does not fly, and you katishsya on the ground at a speed of 230 km / h.

 

Those who survived the plane crash locomotive?

 

Who survived a plane crash in the locomotive?

 

            The crew made desperate attempts to tear the plane off the ground. Finally they got it. The plane took off, but the trouble could not be avoided. Yak-42 crashed into the Volga River less than a mile from the takeoff runway. Local policemen who patrolled the river were the first to arrive at the crash site. Alexander Galimov survived the crash, and was able to independently get out of the wreckage. Engineer Alexander Sizov also survived. Arrived at the crash site in shock from the news that on board were some of the most famous Russian athletes. In the thick black smoke there are no other survivors. 

 

Lokomotiv ice hockey team plane crash

 

Pathologist: When we arrived at the scene, we saw that the whole earth was burned. Small wreckage of the plane and fragments of clothing were lying around. In the middle of the clearing, the bodies of the dead hockey players were already composed. 

 

            A few hours later, Russian aviation experts arrived at the crash site. They must determine the cause of the disaster. From 45 people boarded 43 were killed, including the pilots. The hockey club "Lokomotiv" died almost at full strength.

 

A resident of Yaroslavl: It was grief for the whole city, because many children know not only how well-known players, but also personally. It's very hard to bear this loss.

 

            The news instantly spread all over the world. Everyone was shocked. It was impossible to believe that such a thing could happen to a team of such young, talented guys. In Ufa, the opening match of the Continental Hockey League season was interrupted by terrible news. The players could not continue the match, and it never ended.

 

            The team was loved by everyone, and people wanted questions answered. All the experts' attention was focused on the main thing. Why couldn't the plane get off the runway? For takeoff, three factors are central. The first is engine power. The second is lift. The flaps must be set correctly to improve the aerodynamic performance of the wing. And finally, in order for the plane to take off at the desired angle, the horizontal stabilizer must be set so as to press the tail of the plane and raise its nose.

 

            Experts are examining anything that might indicate an aircraft's wrong takeoff configuration. It looks like the wing flaps were set correctly. Also the tail fin was fine. Other than that, they found nothing to suggest that the engines did not provide enough thrust to lift the plane off the ground. Fortunately the flight recorders were found. It was in them that the key to understanding what happened could be contained.

 

Lokomotiv ice hockey team plane crash

 

            The investigators have two questions. Why pilots flight 9633 could not break away from the runway? And also: why did they not refuse to take off at the first sign of trouble? The team of experts investigating disasters is always under special pressure. But it was a special case. The Russian president himself takes the case under his personal control, and demands that truth be established. 

 

            To understand what was happening in the last moments of the 9633 flight, investigators study the recordings from the airport security cameras. The cameras captured the moment when the Yak-42 finally managed to get off the ground. The video shows that the aircraft is properly configured for takeoff. But there are no clues as to why things went wrong.

 

            To rise above the ground, the plane needed only 1200 meters. They still had about 2800 meters of free runway. Something was holding the plane while it was about to take off. Experts are puzzling over what exactly? They believe that the plane may have been too heavy.

 

Expert: If you underestimated or incorrectly calculated the weight, you will not have a complete picture. You do not know what to expect from the aircraft.

 

            Suspicions increased when investigators learned that Yak Service had no weights at the airport. All calculations were made approximately. But when the experts calculated the theoretical weight of the team and their baggage, they concluded that the plane was not overloaded. Even with all the hockey equipment, the weight of the aircraft was far from the maximum allowable.

 

Lokomotiv Yaroslavl plane crash

 

            Maybe it was the speed? Experts are returning to the engines. Using the calculated weight of the aircraft, they determined that for take-off he needed speed in 215 km / h. Incorrect engine work could explain what happened. However, examining the flight recorders, they have determined that the motor can accelerate the airplane to a speed much greater than that required for take-off. The investigation at an impasse.

 

Expert: The plane is created to fly. The aircraft seek to fly. At a speed of 210 km / h and installing stabilizer 7 degree Yak-42 himself off from the strip; nothing complicated.

           

            10 September 2011, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, together with 40000 mourning fans, took part in a memorial service for Lokomotiv hockey players. Two days later, Alexander Galimov, the last member of one of the best hockey teams in Russia, died from injuries. Yaroslavl tragedy claimed 44 life.

 

            Experts are trying with all their might to establish the cause of the tragedy. They carefully examined the flight data recorder information. Finally, they managed to notice something unusual. Despite the full thrust of the engines, the Yak-42 did not accelerate as fast as it should have.

 

Lokomotiv Yaroslavl plane crash photos

 

Expert: During takeoff, when the aircraft had to constantly gain speed, it is in reality slowed down by the end of the strip. This is very unusual, and potentially dangerous.

 

            Investigators believe that the aircraft brakes were included. It is highly unlikely, but the inclusion of the brakes may explain the unusual behavior of the aircraft. To confirm this theory, the investigators conducted a test in the Flight Research Institute named after Gromov. During the test, take-off, they gradually turned the wheel brakes. The plane was enough traction that would take off. However, the distance required for take-off speed dial has more than doubled.

 

Judge: These tests have shown that 4 brake on the chassis have been included, and actively slowed the aircraft during takeoff for the band. Incredible situation, explain that, really not easy!

 

            On the voice recorder you can hear how the crew checked the brakes before takeoff. They were working. Maybe the brake system failed already during takeoff, and the brakes were activated by mistake? Such problems have already happened with the Yak-42. However, checking the landing gear of the crashed aircraft showed no signs of mechanical problems. The probability of spontaneous activation of all the brakes is immediately negligible. It was just impossible.

 

            The attention of the commission attracts another question. Why the crew continued to try to take to the air when the problem was already obvious. Recording from the cockpit explains this in many ways. Experts hear how the crew commander announces the speed of the so-called decision boundary. When the plane picks up this speed, the commander must decide to continue to take off or abandon it. However, the recording is heard how pilots argue about what speed takeoff. This should not be! The crew does not have to argue about the critical speeds during takeoff... They did not set the speed limit, although it had to be determined even before the aircraft began to move.

 

Expert: Pre-flight briefing is a very important element. It is conducted by the aircraft commander. However, it was carried out casually. The three people in the cockpit did not agree on the speed at which it would be impossible to cancel the takeoff.

 

            If they refused to take off over 3-5 seconds after the first separation attempt, everything would have survived. Instead, they have tried to correct the situation, as long as they did not end the band.

 

Expert: They had time to stop. However, they did not think about taking off the cancellation, and it continued.

 

            Why they did this is anyone's guess. Perhaps they wanted, by all means, to deliver their prestigious passengers to their destination. After all, if there was a delay due to technical problems, it would hit the airline's image.

 

            Having come to the conclusion that the brakes were intact, experts believe that one of the pilots turned them on.

 

Aircraft crash with the locomotive crew

 

Expert: This assumption amazed many in the Russian aviation community. We knew that the pilots were very experienced.

 

            But there is a new clue. Investigation of private affairs pilots revealed that they were flying on two different models of aircraft. The first one Yak-40. The second - the Yak-42, the larger ship. The Yak-42 pilots flew only from case to case, and it was absolutely incorrect practice. It is dangerous to train pilots to fly the aircraft on the two models simultaneously.

 

            Focusing on the brake pedals of the two airplanes, experts noted one potentially important difference. The brake pedals of the Yak-40 cover the entire leg of the pilot. But the pedal design in the Yak-42 implies that the pilot’s heel remains on the cockpit floor.

 

Expert: The pilots flew the aircraft on the same model, on the other. And as it turned out, they have a different way of placing his feet on the brake pedal.

 

            Based on this information, investigators have made the assumption that the pilot put the whole foot on the brake pedal. So he inadvertently turned on the brake. Is it possible.

           

            Why didn't the pilot notice his mistake? Having examined the medical records of the pilots, important information was revealed. Co-pilot in secret undergoing treatment of nervous system. He lost feeling in his legs, and in any case did not have to fly a plane. As a result, he pressed on the brake pedal, he did not understand.

 

            Engaging the brakes on the spinning wheel creates downforce at the nose of the aircraft. The Yak-42 was glued to the runway with glue. And the attempts of the crew to raise the nose only worsened the situation when the plane was still able to take off. He lifted his nose sharply. At 20 degrees in 2 seconds, and could not stay in the air. Raising the nose resulted in a loss of lift on the wings. The drag increased and the plane went into a stall.

 

            Upon further study of the personal files of the pilots, experts make another shocking finding. In many cases, they were given certificates of training, which they do not pass. They had a great experience. But their flight training on the Yak-42 was not sufficient. Federal Air Transport Agency immediately deprived of the license the company "Yak-Service".

 

            In addition, listening to the flight recorder showed that after going beyond the band, the commander began to cancel the takeoff. His example was followed by a flight engineer who reduced engine thrust. However, the co-pilot shouted: “What are you doing ?!”, and the commander overturned his decision, and again tried to take off.

 

Expert: Regulation of action in the cockpit imply a clear hierarchy, headed by - the commander. The problem of "Yak-Service" was the fact that the co-pilot was formally the chief commander. He was a deputy company's flight operations.

 

            They had their last chance to be saved, but because of the confusion, who's in charge, they did not use it.

 

            Two months after the disaster, investigators published their report. Unintentional inhibition was indicated as the main cause of the tragedy. However, the main reason was that the airline security measures were not met.

 

            After the terrible tragedy, Lokomotiv refused to participate in the 2011 season. The following year, the team returned to the league in triumph. She hopes to win the Gagarin Cup again. The public also learned that the captain of the deceased team, Nikolai Tkachenko, was anonymously engaged in charity work, donating millions of rubles to seriously ill children. Minutes before takeoff, he made his final donation to a 16-year-old girl he never knew.

 

            Many hope that the tragedy of Lokomotiv will lead to increased flight safety in Russia.

 

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