Azerbaijan Airlines Flight 217
Azerbaijan Airlines Flight 217 was a scheduled passenger flight between Baku and Aktau, Kazakhstan that crashed into the Caspian Sea at ca. 22:40 on 23 December 2005.[1] The flight was operated by an Antonov An-140.
 An Antonov An-140 similar to the one involved in the crash | |
| Accident | |
|---|---|
| Date | 23 December 2005 |
| Summary | Instrument failure followed by controlled flight into water |
| Site | Caspian Sea, near Nardaran, Azerbaijan 40°33′22″N 50°00′20″E |
| Aircraft | |
| Aircraft type | Antonov An-140-100 |
| Operator | Azerbaijan Airlines |
| Registration | 4K-AZ48 |
| Flight origin | Baku Airport, Azerbaijan |
| Destination | Aktau Airport, Kazakhstan |
| Passengers | 18 |
| Crew | 5 |
| Fatalities | 23 |
| Survivors | 0 |
Crash
Around five minutes after a night-time departure from Baku Airport the crew reported a systems failure. Heading over the Caspian Sea at night without flight instruments made it difficult for the crew to judge their flight parameters. Whilst attempting to return to Baku, the aircraft crashed shortly afterwards on the shore of the Caspian Sea, killing all passengers and crew.[2][3]
Aftermath
Investigations from the Kharkov State Aircraft Manufacturing Company have discovered that three independent gyroscopes were not providing stabilised heading and altitude performance information to the crew early in the flight.[4]
Following the accident, Azerbaijan Airlines grounded the remaining Antonov An-140's and cancelled any future plans of acquiring more of the Ukrainian-built aircraft.
References
- "Azerbaijan plane crash 'kills 23'". 2005-12-23. Retrieved 2019-10-27.
- Ranter, Harro. "ASN Aircraft accident Antonov An-140-100 4K-AZ48 Nardaran". aviation-safety.net. Retrieved 2019-10-27.
- Chivers, C. J. (2005-12-25). "Plane Crashes Into Caspian; 23 Are Killed". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2019-10-27.
- Kaminski-Morrow, David. "Crashed An-140 had gyro failure." Flight International. 10 January 2006. Retrieved on 14 June 2012.