Ukrainian Vice Prime Minister Oleh Uruskyi, who chairs the government's commission that investigates the causes and circumstances of the An-26 crash in Kharkiv region, says that one of the engine control system units on the plane had failed and there were gross violations in preparations for the flight and its performance.
He announced the interim conclusions of the commission on Facebook after having heard a report in military unit A4104 on October 6 by the chairmen of three (aviation, flight and technical) subcommittees for the investigation of the plane crash.
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According to him, findings received during the analysis of the flight recorders helped the investigators to track the sixth flight of the An-26Sh aircraft and gain access to the content of talks between members of the crew and with the flight management unit.
"The technical cause behind the failure of the left engine and the activation of the aircraft pressure sensor by the torque meter was established. This happened as a result of failure in the operation of one of the engine control system units. The investigation also revealed the presence of gross violations, both in performing flight tasks and in organizing flights in general," Uruskyi noted.
Currently, the government commission that is investigating the causes of the An-26Sh plane crash, which occurred in Kharkiv region on September 25, 2020, continues its work.
An-26 crash in Chuhuiv: Background
- The military plane crashed by the highway while approaching the Chuhuiv military airfield late on September 25.
- Kharkiv Air Force University's crew and cadets were on board – a total of 27 people.
- Twenty-five were killed at the crash site and one of the two survivors later died in hospital. The only survivor is still undergoing treatment with no threat to his life reported.
- According to the SBU Security Service, the plane's captain reported left engine failure to the tower and requested an approach to land shortly before the crash.
- Ukraine's Defense Minister Andriy Taran, citing aviation experts, said one of the sensors in the engine of the An-26 transport military aircraft failed, as a result of which the plane's wing caught on the ground as it was approaching the airfield near Chuhuiv before plunging and setting ablaze.
- The An-26 that crashed on September 25 was manufactured in 1977. It had been operated as a training aircraft for the Air Force.
