Tupolev ANT-20 | Bureau of Aircraft Accidents Archives

The six engine airplane departed Urganch on a flight to Tashkent with an intermediate stop in Chardzhou, Turkmenistan. On board were 26 passengers and a crew of 10. While cruising at an altitude of 500 metres in relative good weather conditions, the airplane pitched down then entered an uncontrolled descent and crashed at an angle of 80° in a huge explosion near Sirdarya, some 86 km southwest of Tashkent Airport. The airplane was destroyed and all 36 occupants were killed.

Probable cause:

The captain was not at his seat at the time of the accident. Investigations revealed that a passenger (pilot) was seating at the place of the captain and disconnected the automatic pilot before engaging the aircraft in a wrong attitude and configuration. This caused the aircraft to nose down and crash. It was determined that in the past, the captain regularly allowed non authorized people to take over controls of the airplane. Lack of discipline on part of the captain and lack of supervision on part of the Authority.

Crash of a Tupolev ANT-20 in Tushino: 44 killed

Date & Time: May 18, 1935 at 1245 LT

Type of aircraft:

Tupolev ANT-20

Operator:

Registration:

CCCP-I20

Flight Phase:

Flight

Flight Type:

Demonstration

Survivors:

Site:

City

Schedule:

Tushino - Tushino

MSN:

YOM:

1934

Location:

Country:

Region:

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Circumstances:

This first prototype made his first flight on My 19, 1934. One year later, in Tushino, engineers, pilots and technicians working for Tupolev were engaged in a demonstration flight by the Tushino Air Show. Named 'Maxim Gorki', the eight engine machine was completing a demonstration flight over Moscow with three other aircraft: two Polikarpov I-5 and one Tupolev ANT-14. While cruising at a height of about 600 metres, the pilot of the Polikarpov I-5 cruising parallel to the Tupolev on its left side made a turn to complete a tour over the Tupolev. This manoeuvre was prohibited and unscheduled. Most probably the pilot of the Polikarpov misjudged the distance between both aircraft, and the Polikarpov collided with the Tupolev. Following the collision, both aircraft dove into the ground and crashed in a residential area located in Sokol, near the Tushino Airfield. All 35 occupants on board the 'Maxim Gorki' were killed as well as nine people on the ground and the pilot of the Polikarpov. Up to date, this crash was considered as the worst in the world.
Crew:
I. V. Mikheyev and I. S. Zhurov, pilots of the Maxim Gorki.
Nikolaï Blagin, pilot of the Polikarpov I-5.

Probable cause:

In flight collision caused by a poor judgement on part of the pilot of the Polikarpov I-5.