Azov-Avia accident near Baku

The Azov-Avia accident near Baku occurred on 4 March 2004 on a cargo flight of the Ukrainian Azov-Avia with an Ilyushin Il-76MD. The aircraft crashed on 4 March 2004 immediately after takeoff from Baku Airport in Azerbaijan. The flight was to go from Baku to Kabul, Afghanistan. Three of the seven crew members were killed in the crash and the aircraft was completely destroyed.

Accident sequence

The flight began after a stopover in Ankara, Turkey, where the aircraft was loaded with 39,980 kg of cargo. After a short stopover in Baku for refuelling, during which 47 tonnes of fuel were taken on, the aircraft's takeoff weight was 189 tonnes. The aircraft's centre of gravity was at 29.3% MAC, which was within the permitted limits.

After an eight-hour break in Baku, during which the crew decided to sleep in the aircraft instead of spending the night in a hotel, the aircraft began taxiing for takeoff. The flight engineer stated that he was setting the flaps to 30 degrees and the slats to 14 degrees for takeoff. However, this setting was not made, and before takeoff the position of the flaps was not checked by any crew member. The takeoff took place with flaps and slats retracted, while the horizontal stabiliser was set to the position of −4 degrees calculated for takeoff. At a speed of 210 km/h the captain pulled the control column to raise the nose wheel. Despite a calculated takeoff speed of 265 km/h and an angle of attack of 9 degrees, the aircraft did not lift off. When the speed increased to 290 km/h, the angle of attack reached 14.5 degrees, which triggered the angle-of-attack warning system.

The aircraft struck the runway with its tail (tailstrike), the aircraft's tail dragged along the runway, and 1750 metres after the start of the takeoff the aircraft reached a speed of 300 km/h and an angle of attack of 19.4 degrees. Only at this point did the Ilyushin Il-76 finally lift off.

An airport controller who was watching the takeoff advised the crew to abort the takeoff, but the captain continued the takeoff. The aircraft rolled to the left until the wing touched the runway. The flight engineer then recognised his error and began to extend the flaps and slats. However, he did this without informing the captain. In addition, unnoticed, he reduced engine power to idle before moving it to the shutoff position.

The captain called "Takeoff" (lift off) three times, but the engines had already been shut down. After 490 metres in the air, the aircraft crashed to the ground. The accident resulted in the deaths of three crew members, while four other crew members survived. The aircraft was completely destroyed.