| Vladivostok Air Flight 352 was a scheduled passenger flight from Yekaterinburg, Russia to Vladivostok via Irkutsk which, on 4 July 2001 lost control and crashed while approaching Irkutsk Airport. A total of 136 passengers and 9 flight crew members perished in the accident, making it the third deadliest aircraft crash over Russian territory to date. The Tupolev Tu-154M was on approach for Irkutsk, when the pilots lowered the landing gear, the co-pilot realized that the plane was banking. The Tu-154 was at a 45-degree angle, and the nose was starting to drop. The co-pilot reacted by violently pulling back on the control column. The aircraft's nose rose sharply, causing an immediate stall. The plane's proximity to the ground did not allow sufficient room for the pilots to recover, and the aircraft impacted the ground, killing all 145 people on board. |
