SCAT Airlines

Boeing 737-300

After completing flight DV742 from Astana, the aircraft was parked at a gate, waiting for its passengers to complete the flight DV831 to Mineralnye Vody. The aircraft landed at 1818LT and was scheduled to depart around 1915LT when an explosion occurred in the forward baggage compartment (between STA 380 and STA 440). A fire spread into the cabin and partially destroyed the fuselage. Nobody was hurt in this incident but the aircraft was damaged beyond repair.

Canadair RegionalJet CRJ-200

Following an uneventful flight from Kokshetau, the crew started the descent to Almaty Airport and was cleared for an ILS approach (Cat IIIb approach) to runway 23R. At this time, the horizontal visibility was 200 metres, the vertical visibility 40 metres and the RVR for runway 23R was 275-250-225 metres respectively. Due to this poor weather conditions at destination, the captain got stressed, creating a strong emotional reaction. On short final, at an altitude of 180 metres, the captain decided to abandon the landing procedure and initiated a go-around manoeuvre. The automatic pilot system was deactivated and the TO/GA mode was activated. Four seconds later, the captain pushed the control column forward, causing the aircraft to descend. The EGPWS alarm sounded in the cockpit but there was no response from the flying crew. In a pitch angle of -16° and with a descent rate of about 20-30 metres per second, the aircraft impacted ground and disintegrated in a snow covered field. The wreckage was found some 1,400 metres short of runway. All 21 occupants were killed. Due to the actual weather conditions, the crew should perform a Cat IIIc approach.