1974 Lotru Mountains air crash

The Lotru Mountains air crash took place on 29 December 1974, when an Antonov An-24RV aircraft, operated by the Romanian company TAROM, crashed in the Lotru Mountains, south of Sibiu. The aircraft was operating a domestic flight on the Oradea–Bucharest route and was due to make a stopover in Sibiu. All the people on board died.

The flight and the accident

The aircraft was operating a flight from Oradea to Bucharest with an unscheduled stop requested at Sibiu to board some passengers. The approach to Sibiu airport took place in difficult meteorological conditions from the south. The aircraft crashed around 9 o'clock in the Lotru Mountains, in the area of the Prejba chalet, near Prejba peak, at an altitude of 1700 m.

At the time of the accident, a ski camp of pupils from the "Brukenthal" high school in Sibiu, accompanied by a teacher, was at the Prejba Chalet. The teacher left the chalet alone on skis and found, after a few minutes, the wreckage of the aircraft.

The Ministry of Transport subsequently concluded that the approach procedure by the crew had been incorrect, which led to the aircraft deviating more than 20 km to the south, in conditions where the wind was intensifying and there was turbulence.