Tupolev Tu-134A – CCCP-65816

Incident Overview

Date: Saturday 11 August 1979

Aircraft Type: Tupolev Tu-134A

Owner/operator: Aeroflot / Moldova

Registration Number: CCCP-65816

Location: 3,5 km SE of Kurilovka – ÿ Ukraine

Phase of Flight: En route

Status: Destroyed, written off

Casualties: Fatalities: 94 / Occupants: 94

Component Affected: Flight Levels (specifically, the appointment of flight levels and the established intervals between aircraft)Flight Levels (specifically, the appointment of flight levels and the established intervals between aircraft)

Category: Accident

On October 13, 2006, two Tupolev Tu-134A passenger jets, Aeroflot flight 7880 and Aeroflot flight 7628, experienced a mid-air collision near Kurilovka, Soviet Union (now Ukraine). Flight 7880, carrying 77 passengers and crew, departed Donetsk at 13:11, while Flight 7628 departed Chelyabinsk at 12:54. Both flights were operating under a flight plan requiring a specific altitude change. At 13:17, Flight 7628 entered the Southwest sector of the Kharkiv’s regional air traffic control area at an altitude of 8400 meters. The controller initially cleared the flight to 7200 meters and subsequently to 8400 meters. A request to climb to 9600 meters was denied due to other traffic. At 13:25, Flight 7880 reported entering the sector at 5700 meters and requested to continue their climb to 9600 meters. The controller initially cleared the flight to 7200 meters and subsequently to 8400 meters. Both flights were now at the same altitude, on crossing airways. The controller had calculated that the aircraft would be 3 minutes apart at that point. The supervisor of the Southwest sector noticed this and intervened. At 13:34, the supervisor instructed flight 7880 to climb to 9000 meters. A muffled response was heard by the supervisor, who assumed this was a read back from flight 7780. At 13:35:38, while in the clouds at an altitude of 8400 meters, both aircraft collided at an angle of 95ø. The cockpit of CCCP-65816 collided with the right wing of CCCP-65735. After the collision, both aircraft entered a spin and started to break up. The debris fell to the ground in a large area near the villages of Kurilovka, Nikolaevka, and Elizavetovka.On October 13, 2006, two Tupolev Tu-134A passenger jets, Aeroflot flight 7880 and Aeroflot flight 7628, experienced a mid-air collision near Kurilovka, Soviet Union (now Ukraine). Flight 7880, carrying 77 passengers and crew, departed Donetsk at 13:11, while Flight 7628 departed Chelyabinsk at 12:54. Both flights were operating under a flight plan requiring a specific altitude change. At 13:17, Flight 7628 entered the Southwest sector of the Kharkiv’s regional air traffic control area at an altitude of 8400 meters. The controller initially cleared the flight to 7200 meters and subsequently to 8400 meters. A request to climb to 9600 meters was denied due to other traffic. At 13:25, Flight 7880 reported entering the sector at 5700 meters and requested to continue their climb to 9600 meters. The controller initially cleared the flight to 7200 meters and subsequently to 8400 meters. Both flights were now at the same altitude, on crossing airways. The controller had calculated that the aircraft would be 3 minutes apart at that point. The supervisor of the Southwest sector noticed this and intervened. At 13:34, the supervisor instructed flight 7880 to climb to 9000 meters. A muffled response was heard by the supervisor, who assumed this was a read back from flight 7780. At 13:35:38, while in the clouds at an altitude of 8400 meters, both aircraft collided at an angle of 95ø. The cockpit of CCCP-65816 collided with the right wing of CCCP-65735. After the collision, both aircraft entered a spin and started to break up. The debris fell to the ground in a large area near the villages of Kurilovka, Nikolaevka, and Elizavetovka.

Description

Two Tupolev Tu-134A passenger jets were involved in a mid-air collision near Kurilovka, Soviet Union (now Ukraine). Aeroflot flight 7880, registration CCCP-65735, operated on a flight from Tashkent to Minsk via Donetsk. It departed Donetsk at 13:11 hours. There were seven crew members and 77 passengers on board, including players and coaches of the football team Pakhtakor, heading for a USSR Football Championship game in Minsk. Aeroflot flight 7628, registration CCCP-65816, operated on a flight from Chelyabinsk to Kishinev (now named Chisinau) via Voronezh. The flight departed Voronezh at 12:54. There were six crew members and 88 passengers on board. At 13:17 flight 7628 entered the Southwest sector of the Kharkiv’s regional air traffic control area at an altitude of 8400 m. A request, and two subsequent requests, by the crew to climb to 9600 m were denied because of other traffic in the area. At 13:25, flight 7880 reported entering the sector at 5700 meters and requested to continue their climb to 9600 m. The controller initially cleared the flight to 7200 m and subsequently to 8400 m. Both flights were now at the same altitude, on crossing airways. The controller had calculated that the aircraft would be 3 minutes apart at that point. in fact, this was less than a minute. The supervisor of the Southwest sector noticed this and intervened. At 13:34 the supervisor instructed flight 7880 to climb to 9000 meters. A muffled response was heard by the supervisor, who assumed this was a read back from flight 7780. At 13:35:38, while in the clouds at an altitude of 8400 meters, both aircraft collided at an angle of 95ø. The cockpit of CCCP-65816 collided with the right wing of CCCP-65735. After the collision, both aircraft both aircraft entered a spin and started to break up. The debris fell to the ground in a large area near the villages of Kurilovka, Nikolaevka and Elizavetovka. Conclusion: the cause of the catastrophe was errors and violations of the requirements of the NPP GA-78, made by the controller of the South-Western sector and the controller-instructor in terms of the appointment of flight levels and ensuring the established intervals between the aircraft, and compliance with the rules of radio exchange phraseology.

Source of Information

https://www.airhistory.net/info/soviet.php, http://airdisaster.ru/database.php?id=24https://www.airhistory.net/info/soviet.php, http://airdisaster.ru/database.php?id=24

Primary Cause

Errors and violations of the requirements of the NPP GA-78, made by the controller of the Southwest sector and the controller-instructor in terms of the appointment of flight levels and ensuring the established intervals between the aircraft, and compliance with the rules of radio exchange phraseology.Errors and violations of the requirements of the NPP GA-78, made by the controller of the Southwest sector and the controller-instructor in terms of the appointment of flight levels and ensuring the established intervals between the aircraft, and compliance with the rules of radio exchange phraseology.

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