1988 Soviet Air Force Leninakan Il-76 crash
Soviet Air Forces Ilyushin Il-76M · Controlled flight into terrain due to pilot error
From Heydar Aliyev International Airport (GYD) to Leninakan Airport, Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic
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
- 77 · all aircraft and ground
- Ground fatalities
- Unknown
- Occupants
- Unknown
- Survivors
- 1
- 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
- Unknown
- 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
- Military
Ilyushin Il-76M
- Aircraft type
- Ilyushin IL-76
- 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
- CCCP-86732
- Operator
- Soviet Air Forces
- Onboard fatalities
- 77
- Route
- From Heydar Aliyev International Airport (GYD)To Leninakan Airport, Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic
Cause areas
- Personnel issues › Task performance
- Personnel issues › Physical
From the investigation findings the Wikipedia article reports, sorted into the NTSB's cause areas with AI assistance.
Not plotted · Not plotted: the Wikipedia article gives no coordinates, and its site names no town or airport that matches exactly.
From the Wikipedia article
On 11 December 1988, an Ilyushin Il-76 aircraft crashed. Operated by the Soviet Air Force, the flight participated in relief efforts after an earthquake struck Armenia on 7 December. The aircraft crashed into a mountainside during an attempt to land at Leninakan, Armenia (then part of the Soviet Union), killing 77 of the 78 occupants on board. To date, it is the worst aviation disaster in Armenia.
Accident
The aircraft flew as part of the relief effort following the Spitak earthquake on 7 December. It transported military personnel and equipment to aid in relief efforts following the earthquake. It departed Baku-Bina International Airport in Azerbaijan for Leninakan Airport in Armenia. The aircraft entered Leninakan Airport airspace at 06:10 Moscow time, 56 minutes into the flight, and began to descend from 5,300 m, as instructed by air traffic controllers. It struck the side of a mountain during its descent. All nine crew and 68 of the 69 passengers died. One passenger survived the crash because he had been sleeping in a Kamaz truck loaded with mattresses at the rear of the aircraft.
Investigation and cause
Cause
A day after the crash, an Armenian spokesperson claimed the aircraft crashed after colliding with a helicopter while approaching the airport but news agencies disputed this. Speculations that it was shot down by Armenians also arose. The crash was eventually attributed to an incorrect altimeter setting by the flight crew which gave an incorrect altitude reading that was 1,100 m higher than the actual altitude. The indication on the altimeter at the time of impact was 1,425 m. Crew fatigue was also cited as a factor in the crash as the flight crew was not given enough rest after carrying out multiple relief flights the previous day.
Text from the Wikipedia article “1988 Soviet Air Force Leninakan Il-76 crash” (revision 1372871294, 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: 1988 Soviet Air Force Leninakan Il-76 crash
- Revision
- 1372871294 · 2026-09-02 · retrieved 2026-09-18
- Wikidata
- Q16662497
- 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 "1988 Soviet Air Force Leninakan Il-76 crash" (page 72634099, revision 1372871294)
- Date
- Wikipedia infobox: date
- Place and country
- Wikipedia infobox: site
- Map position
- none
- 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 armed force or military unit 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.