Passenger Plane Crashes at Rostov-on-Don Airport in Russia

[Keit]

Just a simple observation from the CCTV footage (if that footage is actually showing the plane in question): The plane obviously was in free fall and burning. What kind of pilot errors would lead to a burning plane? Can't think of any.

Could this be not fire, but lights of the aircraft? Very hard to see because of the trees.

 

[Mikey]

Could this be not fire, but lights of the aircraft? Very hard to see because of the trees.

It's strong enough to be reflected in the wet road. Too strong for cabin lights IMO.

 

[Keit]

Could this be not fire, but lights of the aircraft? Very hard to see because of the trees.

It's strong enough to be reflected in the wet road. Too strong for cabin lights IMO.

Hmm...in this case it is very strange. I wonder why no one talked about this fact, or about the plane possibly burning during the fall.

 

[Keit]

Could this be not fire, but lights of the aircraft? Very hard to see because of the trees.

It's strong enough to be reflected in the wet road. Too strong for cabin lights IMO.

On this page some commenters proposed their own theories (in Russian). One of them also asked if the plane is possibly on fire, and someone else replied that these are landing lights. That if there was a malfunctions on the plane while still in the air, it would be reported before the crash.

 

[Mikey]

One of them also asked if the plane is possibly on fire, and someone else replied that these are landing lamps.

Landing lamps are visible brightly only when the plane is viewed from the front -- the lamps are unidirectional and focussed. When viewed from the side, they should not be visible much -- they should not cause a reflection in a wet road. I lived in a town next to a small airport and was watching this property of the lights repeatedly. But in the CCTV video, it's not clear in which direction the plane was pointing. It's just falling like a rock.

 

[Keit]

Landing lamps are visible brightly only when the plane is viewed from the front -- the lamps are unidirectional and focussed. When viewed from the side, they should not be visible much -- they should not cause a reflection in a wet road. I lived in a town next to a small airport and was watching this property of the lights repeatedly. But in the CCTV video, it's not clear in which direction the plane was pointing. It's just falling like a rock.

Do you have any hypothesis as to what could possibly have happened?

Btw, apparently an alleged recording of the conversation between the pilots and the flight controllers was released on the net, that allegedly shows that they were calm and didn't report any problems until the moment of the crash. But then, it could easily be a fake.

 

[Laura]

Just a simple observation from the CCTV footage (if that footage is actually showing the plane in question): The plane obviously was in free fall and burning. What kind of pilot errors would lead to a burning plane? Can't think of any.

Not necessarily burning; those could have been the landing lights.

 

[Niall]

I don't see, from that video, that the plane was on fire prior to impact. That light you see is, I think, the headlights.

Tatarstan Airlines Flight 363, also a Boeing 737, flying from ‌Moscow to Kazan, crashed during adverse weather conditions at Kazan airport in November 2013.

This airport security camera footage shows the moment of that crash, which killed all 50 on board. This plane was also making its second attempt at landing. Notice the angle is comes down at...
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The 2013 crash was put down to a combination of 'pilot inexperience/old aircraft/bad weather'.

I think most crashes in recent years can be put down to unusually extreme weather.

 

[Niall]

Is there any chance, considering the weather conditions, that as the plane was approaching the runway at 150 knots, that it hit an up-draft that violently hurled it upward and upon release, the plane dropped out of the sky?

That sounds about right.

 

[Joe]

Just a simple observation from the CCTV footage (if that footage is actually showing the plane in question): The plane obviously was in free fall and burning. What kind of pilot errors would lead to a burning plane? Can't think of any.

Could this be not fire, but lights of the aircraft? Very hard to see because of the trees.

I think that could be one of the plane lights, they are pretty bright.

 

[Joe]

Is there any chance, considering the weather conditions, that as the plane was approaching the runway at 150 knots, that it hit an up-draft that violently hurled it upward and upon release, the plane dropped out of the sky?

That sounds about right.

Or there could have been an updraft followed by a violent downdraft. Something sure seems to have slammed that plane into the ground at high speed (assuming there was no engine failure)

 

[bjorb]

Video of the landing approach appears extreme. Almost even vertical down.


http://sputniknews.com/russia/20160320/1036603955/natural-phenomenon-flydubai-crash.html

Meteorologist: Rare Natural Phenomenon May Have Caused FlyDubai Plane Crash

 

[Yozilla]

Just crossed my mind if some sudden "dropping" of cold stratospheric air (some kind of air eddies ) is already happening. That kind of thing maybe could slam the plane down . Maybe even plane acting like a needle - to punch the "warmer air zone" below and hence causing it's own horrible ending... Uh maybe in the same manner asteroid or comet is first needed to punch the lower atmosphere so the freezing air could penetrate down ... like crack in a dam thing?

y

 

[Vulcan59]

About the lights - most likely what we are seeing in the video are what's called the 'Runway Turnoff' lights (see image). The lights shine outward approximately 30° and have a beam width of 50°. These lights are meant to assist the pilot after landing to better see the runway exit markings. :)

 

[loreta]

Thanks everybody for all the technical information. This information does not answer why the pilot decided to wait 2 hours, flying 2 hours! instead of going to another airport. Is this an answer to this question? I imagine the poor travellers in the airplane waiting 2 hours, tired, nervous, anxious. And then... This accident is horrible!