1971 aviation accident
Balkan Bulgarian Airlines Flight 130 was a scheduled passenger flight from Paris–Le Bourget Airport to Sofia Airport with a stopover in Zurich Airport that, on 18 January 1971, crashed while on approach to Zürich. 38 out of 39 passengers died, and 7 of the 8 crew members died (45 people were killed out of 47).
Aircraft.
The accident aircraft was an Ilyushin Il-18, either of the D or E variant. Its factory number was 18600900, and its serial number was 090-02. It was manufactured and first flew in 1966; later it began operating for Balkan Bulgarian Airlines with registration LZ-BED.
The Il-18 was inspected two days before the accident. By the time of the crash, the aircraft was considered airworthy, having logged 8,622 flight hours and 3,136 pressurisation cycles. There were eight crew members: a captain, a co-pilot, a navigator, a flight engineer, a radio operator, a trainee, and two flight attendants. The captain was Vladimir Vladov.
Accident.
Flight 130 departed Paris in the afternoon and climbed to their assigned altitude. After entering Zurich airspace, the captain asked for the weather conditions there and heard reports about improving weather. The air traffic controller cleared the flight for landing. They initiated approach in bad conditions. On final approach, the crew noticed the plane was off-course and tried to correct; however at 15:49, the left wingtip and undercarriage struck the ground. The Il-18 ended up in flames short of the runway. The crash destroyed the aircraft.
Victims.
Out of the occupants, 14 were West German, 12 were Bulgarian (including the eight crew members), nine were French, four were Syrian, two were Lebanese, one was Brazilian, one was Dutch, one was Argentinian, one was Austrian, one was Finnish, and one was British. Out of the 47 occupants, only two survived, those being a 12-year-old boy and Captain Vladov. Most people died from the post-crash fire and smoke.
Investigation.
The crash was investigated in Switzerland. The black box was significantly damaged and data could not be extracted. An interview with Captain Vladov stated that five years of investigation could not establish a cause. However, other sources state that the investigation concluded that the crew failed to follow published procedures while initiating an ILS approach on runway 16 which led to the Il-18 passing below the minimum descent altitude. The thick fog was also considered a contributing factor.
References.
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