- 2002 Khankala Mi-26 crash
Infobox Airliner accident
name=Khankala Mi-26 crash
Date=August 19 ,2002
Type=shoulder-launched missile
Site=Khankala ,Chechnya
Fatalities=127
Injuries=
Aircraft Type=Mil Mi-26
Operator=Russian Armed Forces
Tail Number=
Passengers=147
Crew=5
Survivors=25On
August 19 ,2002 , aRussia n-madeIgla shoulder-firedsurface-to-air missile hit an overloadedMil Mi-26 helicopter , causing it to crash-land in aminefield and burn at the mainmilitary base at Khankala near thecapital city ofGrozny ,Chechnya . A total of 127Russian Army troops and crew from theRussian Air Force base atMozdok were killed in the crash, the greatest loss of life in the history of helicopteraviation and one of the worst disasters in Russian military history.A
Day of Mourning was declared by theRussian President Vladimir Putin in connection with the catastrophe, which the media called "the second Kursk". [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/world/europe/2206541.stm Russia to mourn helicopter dead] , BBC News, 21 August, 2002] The separatist news agencyKavkaz Center described the crash as the "greatest act ofsabotage by Chechen fighters in two years". [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/2204505.stm Russia outraged by Chechnya crash] , BBC News, 20 August, 2002] The crash led to the suspension of the Russian army's aviation commander,Vitaly Pavlov .Reprisals at Khankala
The Russian military responded to the loss of the Mi-26 (as well as two other helicopters that were shot down at approximately the same time) by destroying an entire
residential area near Khankala in the outskirts of Grozny since it was believed that thesurface-to-air missile s that destroyed the helicopters were fired from one of the many dilapidatedapartment block s that dotted the area.Fact|date=August 2008Some military officials said the Chechens who were left homeless as a result of the attack were themselves partly to blame, because they had failed to report that militants were preparing attacks from their houses. The Russian Army spokesmen, Ilya Shabalkin, reported that the action was carried out with the goal of preventing rebels from using the area to lay
ambush es close to the Khankala military base. It was also announced that five Chechens "suspected of terrorist ties" were killed during the operation.Fact|date=August 2008Trials
The helicopter was designed to carry about 80 troops, while the one that was destroyed was actually carrying 147. The commander in charge of the helicopter,
Lieutenant-Colonel Alexander Kudyakov, was convicted ofnegligence and violating flight regulations.A Chechen who reportedly helped to shoot down the helicopter, a 27-year old Grozny resident named Doku Dzhantemirov, was found guilty of "planning and carrying out an act of terror" and was sentenced to
life imprisonment in April 2004. At his trial, Dzhantemirov maintained that he was not "a terrorist" as accused, instead describing himself as "asoldier of the state of the Ichkeria."Causes
Technically speaking, the helicopter was not overloaded with around 150 people onboard (weighing no more than 12-13 tons). A standard Mi-26 can hover with a 27-ton load, and can carry even greater loads in dynamic flight (getting airborne with a take-off run). The FAI world record of 40,240 kilograms (~43 tons) is held by a Mi-26 prototype from 1985.
The main reason for disaster was negligence on part of the commanders. As a strategic asset, a Mi-26 giant helicopter must be accompanied by two
Mil Mi-24 gunships on every flight over potentially enemy territory. The air cover will provide active and passive countermeasures againstheat-seeking missile s and suppress enemy fighters on the ground using missiles and gunfire, thus protecting the transport craft. In the Khankala incident, the Mi-26 flew without any Mi-24 cover, alone and defenseless.When the
MANPAD impacted the helicopter, causing one engine to explode, the crew crash-landed their Mi-26 in the middle of a minefield protecting the destination airport against rebel infiltration. Upon the hard touchdown, one of the mines detonated, and the combined power of impact and blast broke off the Mi-26's massive tailboom. This structure, which is itself about the size of aUH-1 Iroquois helicopter, blocked the Mi-26's rear loading doors, and the ramp could not be extended. Survivors were forced to abandon the burning wreckage via a small swing-door located in the forward right fuselage, but many did not make it there and died in the fire.References
External links
* [http://www.gazeta.ru/2002/11/06/ArmyrazesChe.shtml Army razes Chechen homes to protect helicopters] , Gazeta.ru, November 11, 2002
* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/3009015.stm Officer charged over Chechen air crash] , BBC News, 7 May, 2003
* [http://www.guardian.co.uk/international/story/0,3604,1206452,00.html Chechen gets life for killing 127 Russian soldiers] , "The Guardian", April 30, 2004
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