Cuito – Menongue – Luanda

On November 25, 1985 at 12:00 AM, Cuito – Menongue – Luanda experienced a crash involving Antonov AN-12, operated by Soviet Air Force - Voyenno-vozdushnye sily CCCP, with the event recorded near Luassingua Cuando Cubango.

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

23 people were known to be on board, 23 fatalities were recorded, 0 survivors were identified or estimated. This corresponds to an estimated fatality rate of 100.0%.

Crew on board: 8, crew fatalities: 8, passengers on board: 15, passenger fatalities: 15, other fatalities: 0.

The listed crash cause is terrorism act, hijacking, sabotage. En route to Menongue, the aircraft was shot down by a South African special forces team with a war-booty "Strela-1" SAM on BRDM-2 chassis. The missile hit the engine n°2 and the left wing detached 47 seconds later. Out of control, the aircraft dove into the ground and crashed in a dense wooded area located near Luassingua, some 43 km east of Menongue. All 23 occupants were killed, among them Soviet and Angolan Army Officers.

Aircraft reference details include registration CCCP-11747, MSN 5 3 436 09, year of manufacture 1965.