Yak-52 crash in Nizhny Tagil

The Yak-52 crash in Nizhny Tagil was an aviation disaster that occurred in Nizhny Tagil on 9 May 1993. During a demonstration performance in honour of the 48th anniversary of victory in the Great Patriotic War, a Yak-52 aircraft lost speed and crashed into a crowd of spectators. 19 people were killed, including both pilots of the Yak-52.

In the media this crash is known as "Bloody Sunday".

Chronology of events

On 9 May 1993, celebrations dedicated to Victory Day were being held on Teatralnaya Square in Nizhny Tagil. At about 12:00 demonstration flights by three Yak-52 aircraft of the Nizhny Tagil Aero Sports Club began. The flight had been approved only over the area of the pond at an altitude of no less than 200 metres. But the head of the Nizhny Tagil Aero Sports Club, in violation of flight rules, on his own moved the festive flight programme to Teatralnaya Square and lowered the planned flight altitude to 100 metres, but in fact the pilots flew at an altitude of 40—60 metres.

After the group stunts were performed, individual performances began. Third in line to perform was the Yak-52 with tail number 135 red: it flew over the square and was to pass over the central stand. The aircraft was flown by 32-year-old flight instructor of the Nizhny Tagil Aero Sports Club Aleksandr Leonidovich Danilov; the second pilot was R. Kandybaev.

Aircraft 135 red was about to perform a roll, which had not been planned in the flight assignment. As a result, the aircraft clipped the tops of trees, lost speed and crashed onto the square. After striking the pavement, the Yak-52 swept along the ground through the crowd of people watching the flight. Firefighters immediately arrived at the crash site and doused the burning aircraft with water.

At the crash site both crew members of the Yak-52 and 17 spectators (among them 8 children) were killed. Dozens more people were injured, 17 of them seriously.

Another crash

On the same day in Saransk, during a demonstration flight over the central square, a Mi-2 helicopter that was scattering congratulatory leaflets crashed. It caught on a cable stretched between buildings, collided with the wall of a house and broke up. Of the five people on board, two were killed; the rest were taken to hospital in serious condition. No one on the ground was hurt.