Fire fighting plane disappeared in Siberia
 

According to latest Swedish news:

Flygplan försvunnet i Ryssland - DN.SE

My translation:

The plane had taken off during the night, and was around 3000 metres [I think, about 9000 feet] in the Irkutsk area when it disappeared.

Ilyushin Il-76 modified for waterbombing, by the look of it:

https://www.rt.com/news/349088-firef...-lost-siberia/

Link includes an impressive video of it in action.

I thought it was supposed to be super-dangerous to be bombed with water... at least that's what media told us when we brought in planes from abroad for a forest fire.

That might be exciting.

It was RA-76840 from MChS (EMERCOM) fleet. Lost in mountainous area (heights from 600 to 1000 m). Last known position is at 3000ft. Water drop height is ~50-500 m. There are no official information yet but it was second drop down this day. Be-200 which also works in the area meets Il-76 on the way back to refill. Believed that Il-76 done second water drop and then not report to tower.

Crew missed:

1. Fillin (Captain)
2. Lebedev (2 Officer)
3. Petrov (Navigator)
4. Kuznetsov (Flight engineer)
5. Murachin (Radio operator)
6-8. Makarov Suslov Hadaev (Eqiupment operators)
9-10. Jdanov Mashinov (Flight technician)

It is.

.......

That's a lot of people to operate a water bomber me thinks...

It is! :=

Our firefighting ops involve working with the AT802s who normally drop three tonnes of water at about 100+(?) knots or thereabouts ..... We know that this is enough to knock anyone in the path to the ground with potential for additional injury, break branches off trees, dent vehicles and cause significant damage to any buildings which score a direct hit. The drops are co-ordinated to make sure that personnel and appliances are well clear of the drop zone.

In the video, it's possible that up to forty plus tonnes is coming at you at a speed much faster than propeller driven A/C (perhaps even 250kt?). The energy being unleashed here is frightening. No way in the world would I be holding the camera or giving the commentary for this sequence. Nor would I be allowed to. :(:eek:

We can safely assume that the demonstration fire in this sequence was extinguished. I will forever wonder about the people who placed themselves right in the drop zone ....

FOR

Well, its Russian. 5 man cockpit and all that. One to operate the radios, one to operate a dinner-plate size ADF and one to start and operate the engines to save the Captain the hassle. Manned like a 1940s warship.

Crikey! Even my Bunnings umbrella wouldn't have survived that! :eek:

[OFFTOPIC]


FOR, it for sure is. Look at this video, it's Be-200, so it's half the amount of water but still: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0BzGPTuAGqo.

This is very good video about operations of firefifgter based on Il-76TD: https://youtu.be/89vm_Q_8SlQ

Hi again Kulverstukas! Thanks for the videos.

I have always thought the Be200 is an amazing waterbomber and I don't know the politics of everything so I am just bewildered that this plane isn't more common.

An operator in the U.S. has been trying to get BE200's into the U.S. for the last several years. One toured the states a couple years ago for several operators to eval. The U.S. Forest Service Also went to Russia to evaluate the tanker (it passed the tests). Last I hear they may try to manufacture them in the U.S. under license, that makes no dam sense so it must be an FAA certifying issue. Now with the current administrations inability to foster any kind of foreign relations it's even less likely to happen.

Today in the early morning (02:00AM MSK) Mi-8 on the route to the new spot of forest fire with ground firefighters crew onboard spotted crash place. Plane destroyed, nobody survived. Bodies and flight recorder reported found. Presumably, plane catches hot air into engines at climb after waterbombing and failed to avoid trees at the hill slope (900m, +225m from valley level). :(

https://phototass2.cdnvideo.ru/fit/1...03/4284009.jpg

https://cdn1.tass.ru/fit/1000x1000_a...03/4284012.jpg

(c) TASS

IRKUTSK, July 3. /TASS/. Rescuers have found body fragments of the crew and one flight recorder at the Il-76 crash site in Irkutsk region, the rescuers told TASS on Sunday.

"During the search at the crash site in the Irkutsk region, the rescuers found body fragments of the victims and one of the two flight recorders," the source said.

The search is under way.

"Judging from the scale of crash, all the ten people of the crew have died," the source said.

For the moment rescuers have found four bodies.

Earlier on Sunday, reports said rescuers found the missing fire-fighting Il-76 plane four kilometers south of the Rybny Yan settlement on the slope of a hill.

On July1, the Il-76 plane did not go on the air for a radio contact at a due time. The communication was lost as the plane was at the height of 3,000 meters. The plane was equipped with an airborne spray tank for fighting wildfires in the Irkutsk region. On board the plane was only the crew of 10 people.


More:
TASS: Society & Culture - Rescuers find body fragments of crew, one flight recorder at Il-76 crash site

The IL-76 has had a fatal crash nearly every year for the last 20 years. A/C itself seems robust though.

Sad to hear of this latest.

I think you may find the same for a few western types too!

A tragedy for all involved. My profound sympathies to the colleagues and families of those who perished. We all know that firefighting is a dangerous business, but any loss of life when it happens, sends a shock wave of emotion through all who do battle with the red enemy - especially when this number of brave souls are lost in a single event.

FOR

Along with An-12 if we talk about Soviet types. But them fly in dangerous conditions, frequently without any ground aids like ILS etc., lot of them are flown by poor educated crews (in Asia and Africa), with poor or totally absent maintenance.

However last case is sad example of first.

At 16:30MSK 6 bodies found and both flight recorders are rescued.