Bamako - Kano - Mecca - Jeddah - Khartoum - Kano - Bamako
Flight / Schedule
Bamako - Kano - Mecca - Jeddah - Khartoum - Kano - Bamako
Aircraft
Ilyushin II-18Registration
TZ-ABE
MSN
181 0033 04
Year of Manufacture
1961
Operator
Air MaliDate
August 11, 1974 at 12:00 AM
Type
CRASHFlight Type
Scheduled Revenue Flight
Flight Phase
Flight
Crash Site
Desert
Crash Location
Linoghin Zoundwéogo (Manga)
Region
Africa • Burkina Faso
Crash Cause
Technical failure
Narrative Report
On August 11, 1974 at 12:00 AM, Bamako - Kano - Mecca - Jeddah - Khartoum - Kano - Bamako experienced a crash involving Ilyushin II-18, operated by Air Mali, with the event recorded near Linoghin Zoundwéogo (Manga).
The flight was categorized as scheduled revenue flight and the reported phase was flight at a desert crash site.
60 people were known to be on board, 47 fatalities were recorded, 13 survivors were identified or estimated. This corresponds to an estimated fatality rate of 78.3%.
Crew on board: 10, crew fatalities: 8, passengers on board: 50, passenger fatalities: 39, other fatalities: 0.
The listed crash cause is technical failure. The airplane was engaged in a monthly schedule flight from Bamako to Saudi Arabia. En route from Bamako to Kano, ATC informed the crew about the deterioration of the weather conditions and instructed the pilots to divert to Niamey. In marginal weather conditions, the crew apparently lost his orientation and probably following a navigational error, the airplane flew to the west when the crew realized he was flying over the region of Ouagadougou, about 400 km southwest of Niamey. Shortly later, as he was short of fuel, the crew was forced to attempt an emergency landing when the airplane crashed in an open field located in Linoghin, about 40 km east of Ouagadougou. Two crew members and 11 passengers were injured while 47 other occupants were killed.
Aircraft reference details include registration TZ-ABE, MSN 181 0033 04, year of manufacture 1961.
Fatalities
Total
47
Crew
8
Passengers
39
Other
0
Crash Summary
The airplane was engaged in a monthly schedule flight from Bamako to Saudi Arabia. En route from Bamako to Kano, ATC informed the crew about the deterioration of the weather conditions and instructed the pilots to divert to Niamey. In marginal weather conditions, the crew apparently lost his orientation and probably following a navigational error, the airplane flew to the west when the crew realized he was flying over the region of Ouagadougou, about 400 km southwest of Niamey. Shortly later, as he was short of fuel, the crew was forced to attempt an emergency landing when the airplane crashed in an open field located in Linoghin, about 40 km east of Ouagadougou. Two crew members and 11 passengers were injured while 47 other occupants were killed.
Cause: Technical failure
Occupants & Outcome
Crew On Board
10
Passengers On Board
50
Estimated Survivors
13
Fatality Rate
78.3%
Known people on board: 60
Operational Details
Schedule / Flight
Bamako - Kano - Mecca - Jeddah - Khartoum - Kano - Bamako
Operator
Air MaliFlight Type
Scheduled Revenue Flight
Flight Phase
Flight
Crash Site
Desert
Region / Country
Africa • Burkina Faso
Aircraft Details
Similar Plane Crashes
French Government
Douglas C-47 Skytrain (DC-3)
The aircraft was performing a flight from Yaoundé to Paris on behalf of the French Government, carrying Mr. André Soucadaux, High Commissioner of France in Cameroun, his wife and both children and his chief of cabinet. While cruising southeast of Ouagadougou, the crew encountered poor weather conditions and informed ground that he lost his orientation. Eventually, the captain attempted to make an emergency landing in a desert area located near Tenkodogo, about 140 km southeast of Ouagadougou. All 13 occupants were injured and later rescued while the aircraft was damaged beyond repair.
Soviet Air Force - Voyenno-vozdushnye sily CCCP
Ilyushin II-18
The crew (five engineers and five test pilots) were engaged in a local test flight out from Moscow-Sheremetievo Airport. Few minutes after takeoff, the engine number two failed. As it was not possible to feather the propeller, the airplane lost height and speed. The crew decided to return to Sheremetievo Airport for an emergency landing but on final, the airplane stalled and crashed in flames 4 km short of runway threshold. The airplane was destroyed and all ten occupants were killed. The test flight was performed on behalf of AKDON – Aviatsionnaya Krasnoznamyonnaya Diviziya Osobogo Naznacheniya, a division of the Soviet Army.
Aeroflot - Russian International Airlines
Ilyushin II-18
While cruising at an altitude of 10,000 meters over the region of Voronezh, the airplane penetrated cumulonimbus area and suffered updrafts first. It climbed to 10,700 meters then encountered downdrafts and descended to 7,000 meters. The propellers on both engines number one and four were automatically feathered when new downdrafts were encountered. The airplane descended to the altitude of 2,800 meters when the crew was able to recover control of the airplane. The crew contacted ATC and obtained the permission to return to Vnukovo for an emergency landing. Following an uneventful landing, all 56 occupants (some of them injured) were evacuated and the aircraft was later declared as damaged beyond economical repair due to heavy damage to the structure. Also, it was reported that the chemical liquid stored in the toilet compartment leaked and contacted several electrical system, causing short-circuits. Several connectors were down as well as the VHF communication system.
Aeroflot - Russian International Airlines
Ilyushin II-18
The crew was completing a local training flight at Sverdlovsk-Koltsovo Airport. Following two landings and two approches, the crew started a new approach by night. During the last segment, at a speed of 260 km/h, the aircraft adopted a nose down attitude and struck the runway with its nose gear first that was sheared off upon impact. The airplane bounced and climbed to a height of about 10 meters before hitting the runway again in a nose down attitude. Upon impact, the airplane went out of control and veered off runway to the right before coming to rest in flames. The flight mechanic was killed while all four other occupants were injured. The aircraft was partially destroyed by fire.
Aeroflot - Russian International Airlines
Ilyushin II-18
While flying over the region of Kiev, the crew contacted ATC about a fire on engine number 4 and requested the permission to divert to Borispol Airport. Due to the position of the aircraft, ATC vectored the crew to Zhulyani Airport. Shortly later, while on descent, the engine number four detached and the fire spread to the right wing. Out of control, the airplane entered a dive and crashed in flames in a near vertical attitude in a wooded area located in Tarasovichi, about 41 km north of Zhulyani Airport. The airplane disintegrated on impact and all 34 occupants were killed, among them 4 Yemen, 5 Algerians, one Ugandan and one Afghan. The five Algerians were Mustapha Ferroukhi, ambassador of FLN in Peking travelling with his wife and three children. The Ugandan citizen was John Muhima Kalekezi, president of the Uganda National Congress who was travelling to Moscow for a meeting with Nikita Khrushchev.
Aeroflot - Russian International Airlines
Ilyushin II-18
The crew was completing a training flight from Kuybyshev to Ulyanovsk, carrying 13 crew members (five instructors and eight pilots under supervision) and four employees of the Voronezh aircraft plant. Following an uneventful flight, the pilot started the approach and when the flaps were selected down to 40°, the airplane became unstable. From a height of 120-150 metes, it stalled and crashed in a field located 1,240 meters short of runway threshold. The airplane was destroyed and all 17 occupants were killed.