Kharkiv – Mineralnye Vody – Tbilisi

On March 7, 1932 at 12:35 PM, Kharkiv – Mineralnye Vody – Tbilisi experienced a crash involving Kalinin K-4, operated by Ukrvozduchput, with the event recorded near Novopavlovsk Stavropol Krai.

The flight was categorized as ferry and the reported phase was flight at a plain, valley crash site.

3 people were known to be on board, 2 fatalities were recorded, 1 survivors were identified or estimated. This corresponds to an estimated fatality rate of 66.7%.

Crew on board: 3, crew fatalities: 2, passengers on board: 0, passenger fatalities: 0, other fatalities: 0.

The listed crash cause is human factor. The crew departed Kharkiv to ferry the airplane to its base in Tiflis with an intermediate stop in Mineralnye Vody. After takeoff from Mineralnye Vody Airport, the crew climbed to an altitude of 300-350 metres then continued to the southeast, following the railway track. About 20 minutes into the flight, weather conditions worsened and the visibility was poor due to fog. Rather than returning to Mineralnye Vody, the captain decided to continue and reduced his altitude. He continued vertical to the railway line, sometimes to its left sometimes to its right. Too low, the airplane struck the ground and crashed near the Apollonskaya Station in Novopavlovsk. One mechanic was seriously injured while both other occupants were killed.

Aircraft reference details include registration CCCP-L228, MSN 116, year of manufacture 1929.

Geospatial coordinates for this crash are approximately 43.9619°, 43.6311°.