Draft:Vologda Aviation Enterprise Flight 9651
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Vologda Aviation Enterprise Flight 9651 was an international charter flight from Moscow, Russia to Kyiv, Ukraine. On 9 March 2000, the Yak-40D crashed and completely disintegrated after barely taking off from the Sheremetyevo Airport. All five crew members and four passenger on board died..[1][2]
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Comment: Coverage limited to reporting immediately after the crash. As there appears to be little additional information of note other than the "fact-of" the incident, it can be appropriately covered under the Accidents and incidents section of Sheremetyevo Airport. nf utvol (talk) 18:17, 28 July 2026 (UTC)
- In response to that, there were two individuals were high-profile that died. I have gave sourced that claimed that the accident have impact on the politics in Russia since a well-known journalist had died in this crash. In 2004, an investigation had been made to re-reviewed the death of that journalist. There is a 2010 article dedicated a paragraph to this crash, but it mainly focuses on the journalist himself, so I didn't cite here. Additionally, a criminial case of the ground crew of the airport was made toward theft and negligance, but the coverage was too little for me to believe that the case should be written here. Other than that, I have proved WP:CONTINUEDCOVERAGE and WP:LASTING. That's enough for me to explain my re-submit.Ohok12 (talk) 12:02, 29 July 2026 (UTC)
- near Sheremetyevo International Airport, Moscow, Russia
 RA-88170, the aircraft involved, pictured in 1995 | |
| Accident | |
|---|---|
| Date | 9 March 2000 |
| Summary | Crashed shortly after takeoff due to atmospheric icing and pilot error |
| Site |
|
| Aircraft | |
| Aircraft type | Yakovlev Yak-40D |
| Operator | Vologda Aviation Enterprise |
| ICAO flight No. | VGV9651 |
| Call sign | VOLOGDA AIR 9651 |
| Registration | RA-88170 |
| Flight origin | Sheremetyevo International Airport, Moscow, Russia |
| Destination | Boryspil International Airport, Kyiv, Ukraine |
| Occupants | 9 |
| Passengers | 4 |
| Crew | 5 |
| Fatalities | 9 |
| Survivors | 0 |
Aircraft
The plane involved was a Yakovlev Yak-40D manufactured on May 5, 1976. It was delivered to the Ministry of Civil Aviation and then handed over to Buguruslan Flight School of Civil Aviation on May 13, 1976.
On October 2, 1981, the aircraft was reassigned to Vologda United Air Detachment of the Leningrad Civil Aviation Authority (now Vologda Aviation Enterprise). From August 1997 to June 1998, it was leased to Aerotex Airlines.
By the time of the accident, the plane logged in 20,497 cycles and 21,428 flight hours.[3]
Victims
Crew members
- Captain: Sergei A. Yakushin (37) – flown the Yak-40 since 1985, logging in 6,728 hours on this type
- First Officer: Eduard A. Moguev (31) – having 880 flight hours of the Yak-40
- Flight engineer: Vasily G. Navolotsky (44) having 7,649 flight hours of the Yak-40
- Stewardess: Svetlana G. Koryagina - wife of the general director of Aerotex airline
- Stewardess: Evgeniya A. Yakovleva - daughter of the president of Aerotex airline[4][5][6]
According to official documents, Koryagina and Yakovleva were assigned to the flight mission without having the appropriate training as a flight attendant or flight manager
Passengers
- Ziya Bazhayev – founder and president of Alliance Oil Company
- Nikolay A. Tektov – security officers of the Alliance Oil Company
- Andrey V. Sichkar – security officers of the Alliance Oil Company
- Artyom Borovik – journalist and president of the Sovershenno Sekretno, son of journalist Genrikh Borovik[4]
Accident
At 8:42, the plane began takeoff. However, at an altitude of no more than 15 m (49 feet) and a speed of 230 km/h (124 knots), the aircraft entered a stall, accompanied by an uncontrollable bank to the left, after which it collided with the ground 1,200 m from the takeoff point and 63 m to the left of the runway centerline and was destroyed. The impact split the fuselage in two, and the debris scattered across the airfield burst into flames. The fire that had started was extinguished by the measures taken.[3][7]
From the account of Ivan Zashcherinsky, a Sheremetyevo Airport employee: “ I was walking to work behind the parking lots, perpendicular to the spot where the plane crashed. The Yak-40 caught my attention because it was taking off like a foreign aircraft—steeply. A red and yellow flame was erupting from the left engine exhaust. The plane was climbing. Two seconds later, it suddenly began to bank smoothly to the left. It seemed to be making a left turn toward the Sheremetyevo-2 building. The plane hit the ground with its left wing, then its nose. Then there was a kerosene explosion, but practically nothing burned; only black clouds of smoke hung over the wreckage for a long time, as there was practically no wind .”[7]
Investigation
Initial theories
A theory of a terrorist attack was made as the passengers included high-profile individuals, in which, before the flight, Ziya Bazhayev and Artyom Borovik were found to have been threatened,[8] but was ruled out since no hazardous flame were found before the plane impacted with the ground.[9] Another theory was made that the plane had suffered from wake turbulence from a Boeing 767 took off just shortly before the flight, but was also refuted.[10][11]
Conclusion
According to the Interstate Aviation Committee (IAC), the cause of the accident was a combination of two factors: pilot error, which involved taking off with flaps extended to 11° instead of the required 20°, and the negligence of technical services, which failed to treat the aircraft with de-icing fluid. Crew error was deemed the decisive cause of the accident. The engine flares observed by eyewitnesses were a manifestation of surge during the aircraft's loss of speed.[7] Any engine failures are not confirmed by the flight data recorder (the speed recording corresponds to normal engine operating conditions), the results of takeoff simulations, or studies of the power plants. However, according to the final report, the left engine was found to fail right after liftoff.[3]
Controversies
Shortly after the accident occured, Novaya Gazeta raised concern about the crash being rigged by the authorities. Ziya and Artyom has some impact related to the Chechnya freedom of speech. Especially, Artyom was known to have publication toward Vladimir Putin. An independent investigation was made due to the disbelief in the probable cause - human factor.[12][13]
In an interview, Veronika Borovik-Khilchevskaya, Artem's widow and colleague stated "We believe that the possibility of conducting an online and, hopefully, competent investigation will accelerate the process of revealing the truth about events that are significant to us all."[13]
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