IrAero Flight 103
Antonov An-24RV · Controlled flight into terrain during approach due to pilot error
From Irkutsk International Airport (IKT) to Khabarovsk Novy Airport (KHV)
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
- 0 · all aircraft and ground
- Ground fatalities
- Unknown
- Occupants
- 41
- Survivors
- 41
- 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
- 15
- 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
Antonov An-24RV
- Aircraft type
- Antonov AN-24
- 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
- RA-46561
- Operator
- IrAero
- Onboard fatalities
- 0
- Route
- From Irkutsk International Airport (IKT)To Khabarovsk Novy Airport (KHV)
Cause areas
- Personnel issues › Action/decision
- Environmental issues › Operating environment
From the investigation findings the Wikipedia article reports, sorted into the NTSB's cause areas with AI assistance.
Approximate · Estimated position: Ignatyevo Airport, the airport the Wikipedia article names as the site. Where on or near it is not known.
From the Wikipedia article
IrAero Flight 103 was a domestic passeger flight in Russia en routing Irkutsk - Chita - Blagoveshchensk - Khabarovsk. On August 8, 2011, while descending to Ignatyevo Airport, the Antonov An-24RV landed to the right of the runway threshold and crashed into a forest, injuring 15 of the 41 on board, but no one died.
Accident
At 1:11 UTC (10:11 GMT +9), the plane took off from Chita-Kadala International Airport. Before descending to Ignatyevo Airport at 03:32 UTC (13:32 GMT +10), the crew had the ATIS received. The approach was executed in limited visibility, heavy rain, and storm-induced turbulence. At 04:14 UTC (14:14 GMT+10), the plane deviated to the right and landed into a forrest 200 meters from the runway. The impact cause the left wing and the landing gear to rupture and the engines to be damaged; kerosene spilled over the fuselage, but it didn't ignite due to rain.
During the impact, the flight engineer had shut down the engines. Since the fuselage was damaged, the exits of the aircraft was jammed, trapping the occupants inside the cabin. A passenger smashed the windows, creating a gap for two men to escape and help the other. A child was trapped between a seat and pulled out by a rescuer. In total, 12 passengers and 3 crew members (the captain, co-pilot and the flight engineer) were injured and was taken to the hospital.
A rescuer named Igor Chabykin admitted that the fact that the plane had no loss of life was a miracle.
Investigation and cause
Investigation
The investigation was conducted by the Interstate Aviation Committee. On April 6, 2012, the final report of the accident was published.
The accident was concluded to be caused by pilot error. It is stated that the crew should have initiated a go-around when they have indications of aborting the landing (the ground proximity warning system was activated and the crew were unable to see the runway in hazardous condition) during the decision altitude. A contributory factor is the fact that the crew and the controller received inaccurate weather information.
Text from the Wikipedia article “IrAero Flight 103” (revision 1375310132, 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: IrAero Flight 103
- Article
- IrAero Flight 103
- Revision
- 1375310132 · 2026-09-17 · retrieved 2026-09-18
- Wikidata
- Q4055379
- 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 "IrAero Flight 103" (page 84059273, revision 1375310132)
- Date
- Wikipedia infobox: date
- Place and country
- Wikipedia infobox: site
- Map position
- airport the Wikipedia infobox site links (Wikidata code, OurAirports)
- Aircraft, operator and route
- Wikipedia infobox: aircraft type, registration, operator, origin and destination; route airports from the linked airport articles' Wikidata codes (OurAirports)
- Operation
- flight number in the article title
- 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.