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1993 Tajikistan Airlines Yakovlev Yak-40 crash

28 Aug 1993 · Unknown location

Yakovlev Yak-40 · Excess takeoff weight, runway overrun

From Khorog Airport (UT1C) to Dushanbe International Airport (DYU)

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Event

Event typeAccident: someone killed or seriously injured, or the aircraft substantially damaged (NTSB definition). Incident: an occurrence that affected or could have affected safety, short of that. Glossary
Accident
Event fatalities
82 · all aircraft and ground
Ground fatalities
Unknown
Occupants
86
Survivors
4
InjuriesFatal: death within 30 days. Serious: over 48 hours in hospital within a week, most broken bones, severe bleeding, nerve or organ damage, or serious burns. Minor: anything less. Glossary
4
OperationWhat kind of flying it was, grouped by the rules it flew under: airline (US Part 121), air taxi and commuter (Part 135), general aviation (Part 91 and similar), military or government. Glossary
Airline

Yakovlev Yak-40

Aircraft type
Yakovlev YAK-40
Category
Airplane · from aircraft type
RegistrationThe aircraft's tail number, such as N12345 or G-ABCD. Registrations are reissued, so the same one years apart can be a different aircraft. Glossary
EY-87995
Onboard fatalities
82
Route
From Khorog Airport (UT1C)To Dushanbe International Airport (DYU)

Approximate · Coordinates from the Wikipedia article; not checked against an investigation report.

From the Wikipedia article

On 28 August 1993 a non-scheduled domestic passenger flight operated by Tajikistan Airlines and served by a Yakovlev Yak-40 crashed during takeoff at Khorog Airport, killing 82 people on board (including 14 children). Militants during the civil war in Tajikistan forced the crew to take more passengers than the aircraft was able to carry, which led to an excess takeoff weight. Unable to take off, the aircraft overran the runway at high speed, struck several obstacles and fell into the Panj River.

The crash remains the deadliest accident involving a Yakovlev Yak-40 and the deadliest aviation accident in Tajikistan.

Crash

During boarding at the Tajik city of Khorog the militants, controlling the adjacent area during the civil war, threatened the crew with weapons and forced it to take 81 passengers, while the aircraft was designed to carry only 28. This led the maximum takeoff weight to be exceeded by 3,000 kg.

The crew was forced to take off under the threat of shooting. The left main landing gear struck a low earth embankment, 148 or 150 m beyond the runway end. Then the aircraft struck a boulder 60 cm high. Subsequently, the right gear struck a concrete pillbox 60 m further. The aircraft ultimately fell into the Panj River and disintegrated. Four passengers survived.

Text from the Wikipedia article “1993 Tajikistan Airlines Yakovlev Yak-40 crash” (revision 1339317556, retrieved 2026-09-18) by its authors, under CC BY-SA 4.0. Extracted as plain text: references, tables, images and some sections are left out. Read the article

Sources

Wikipedia article: 1993 Tajikistan Airlines Yakovlev Yak-40 crash
Article
1993 Tajikistan Airlines Yakovlev Yak-40 crash
Revision
1339317556 · 2026-02-19 · retrieved 2026-09-18
Wikidata
Q16662613
Licence
Text CC BY-SA 4.0, by the article's authors; Wikidata CC0; town positions GeoNames (CC BY 4.0)
Where each value comes from
Record
Wikipedia article "1993 Tajikistan Airlines Yakovlev Yak-40 crash" (page 42881179, revision 1339317556)
Date
Wikipedia infobox: date
Place and country
Wikipedia infobox: site; country from Wikidata (P17)
Map position
Wikipedia article coordinates
Aircraft, operator and route
Wikipedia infobox: aircraft type, registration, operator, origin and destination; route airports from the linked airport articles' Wikidata codes (OurAirports)
Operation
operator named as an airline in the infobox
Fatalities
Wikipedia infobox: aircraft fatalities
Ground fatalities
not stated in the Wikipedia infobox
Summary
Wikipedia infobox: summary
Source notes (1)
  • Wikipedia · Facts from the Wikipedia article's infobox and coordinates, not checked against an investigation report. Independent review pending.