Why can't you land a plane on the water. The commander is the last to leave. Landing at night

There are special brands of aircraft designed for landing on water. But history knows many examples when the pilots of conventional aircraft had to land not at the airfield, but on the water surface. Cast runway the rivers Neva, Volga, Hudson and even the Pacific Ocean performed.

Unfortunately, accidents happen in aviation when equipment fails for one reason or another. Today we will talk about the unique cases when ordinary passenger planes, and not seaplanes, managed to land safely on the water. Most of them were doomed to death due to engine failure or other reasons. But thanks to the courage and professionalism of the pilots, they managed to land on the water and in many cases do without casualties.

Landing IL-12 on the Volga

This story of a plane splashing down with 23 passengers on board took place on April 30, 1953. The passenger plane operated the Moscow-Novosibirsk flight with a stopover at the Kazan airport. Just before approaching the intermediate landing, both engines failed on the plane. As it turned out later, this emergency arose due to a meeting with a flock of ducks that got into the engine. The plane began to quickly lose altitude, and in the current difficult conditions, the crew decided to land the plane on the water. The emergency landing was made in the area of ​​Kazansky river port. Since this happened quite far from the coast (the depth of the landing site was about 18 meters), the plane began to fill with water and slowly sink. rescue operation complicated by the fact that the landing took place at 21.37 local time and it was already dark. All passengers and crew members managed to get out of the sinking plane. locals all the victims were brought to the shore by boats, except for one passenger, who, unfortunately, drowned, becoming the only victim of this plane crash.

Boeing 377 landing in the Pacific Ocean

Second successful case landing of the aircraft on the water occurred on October 15, 1956. On board the ship, en route from Honolulu to San Francisco, were 24 passengers and 7 crew members. After the failure of 2 of the four engines, the commander decided to land the liner on the water. As a result of a successful landing, none of the passengers were injured, and they were picked up by Coast Guard rescuers.

Tu-124 landing on the Neva

This incident occurred on August 21, 1963 in the sky over Leningrad. The aircraft was flying on the Tallinn-Moscow route. There were 52 people on board: 45 passengers and 7 crew members. Some time after takeoff from Tallinn airport, the crew discovered that the landing gear had jammed. After negotiations with dispatchers, it was decided to land the plane at the nearest airport, which turned out to be Pulkovo in Leningrad. Due to problems with the landing gear, it became immediately clear that the landing would be an emergency and in order to avoid fire and explosion, it was necessary to run out of fuel. After an hour of circling over Leningrad, when there was already little fuel left, problems arose with the engine. One after another, both engines failed, and the only chance to save the crew and the plane was landing on the water surface of the Neva. If the crew did not include co-pilot Vasily Grigoryevich Chechenev, who had experience in landing aircraft on water, then it is not known how everything would have ended. In a matter of seconds, the captain handed over control of the aircraft to Chechenev, who, thanks to his experience in naval aviation, managed to balance the position of the aircraft for landing on water. The plane splashed down safely on the Neva opposite the Alexander Nevsky Lavra, where rescuers and evacuation services were already waiting for it. All passengers and crew members survived.

Landing of a Japanese liner in the Pacific Ocean

This crash landing took place on November 22, 1968 near San Francisco. Japan Airlines DC-8 aircraft, carrying 96 passengers and 11 crew members, flew from Tokyo to San Francisco. This time, the cause of the emergency landing was a dense fog that enveloped the landing area. Due to poor visibility and an error in the instruments, which the captain of the ship was guided by, the crew landed on the water instead of runway. Moreover, the pilots until the last thought that they were landing at the airport. Perhaps the lack of panic ensured the success of the entire operation. None of the passengers were hurt.

Tu-134 landing on the Moscow Canal

This incident occurred on July 17, 1972, when the aircraft was on a test and made an experimental flight. As a result emergency the liner had an engine shutdown. There were 5 crew members on board at the time. Thanks to the professionalism of the pilots, it was possible to land the aircraft on the Ikshinskoye reservoir, one of the reservoirs of the Moscow Canal system. As a result of the incident, no one was injured.

Landing A 320-214 on the Hudson

The last landing of a large passenger airliner occurred not so long ago - on January 15, 2009. The aircraft with 150 passengers and 5 crew members on board flew on the New York-Seattle route. Just 1.5 minutes after takeoff, the liner collided with a flock of birds, resulting in a shutdown of both engines. By this point, the plane had already climbed to 975 meters, so the pilots had time to plan. The crew managed to turn the plane around and make a successful landing on the water surface of the Hudson River opposite 48th Street in Manhattan. All passengers made it to the surface safely and were rescued. And although some of them were injured, landing on the Hudson River can be called a miracle, as all 155 passengers survived.

In all the cases described, numerous victims were avoided precisely thanks to the skill of the crew. Unfortunately, all planes after such landings no longer returned to the sky. According to experts, the favorable outcome of an emergency landing on the water depends on several factors. Of greatest importance is the state of the water surface (the presence of waves or obstacles), the type of aircraft itself (large airliners are easier to land on the water) and the skill of the crew. It is the last factor that is decisive.

This event will certainly go down in the history of aviation, it will teach young American pilots and test the knowledge of the current flight crew.

As befits a Hollywood movie, this story has main character- former military pilot, 57-year-old pilot Chesley Sullenberger, nicknamed Sally. And a worthy happy ending - after the plane he was flying landed on the water, all 150 passengers were saved.

Moreover, the pilot left the board, as befits a sea captain, the last. He examined the plane twice to make sure once again that people had left the sinking airship.

The American media reproduced the chronicle of the flight incident. At 15:26 local time, the Airbus A-320 took off from New York's LaGuardia Airport. But he did not manage to gain a given height. Having risen about 800 meters, 30-45 seconds after takeoff, the pilot reported an emergency situation - a collision of the aircraft with at least two birds. Passengers will become aware of this later - already on the ground. Those who were in the cabin, pinned down by seat belts, looking out of the windows with curiosity, described what happened in the same way - "something loudly banged, the plane staggered, and there was a smell of burning."

It is hard to imagine what people experienced when they realized that the liner, which was taking off, began to lose altitude sharply. Everyone understood that something was happening and it was not turbulence. Some passengers sitting closer to the tail saw flames burst from the engines and they began to smoke. It became unusually quiet. The words "fasten your seat belts" continued to burn on the scoreboard. At this critical moment, a message from the pilot about the upcoming landing on the water followed. The pilot warned passengers about a possible "strong blow".

What happened in the cockpit became known from the transcript of the recordings of Sally's conversations with the control room. Initially, the crew requested a landing at the airport of departure. However, it quickly became clear that a return was impossible. Then it was decided to reach the nearest runway in the state of New Jersey, neighboring New York. But after about three minutes of flight, the pilot transmitted to the ground that he would not be able to keep the car in the air. Then the idea came up to land the plane on the only open area suitable in size - in the park, located along the route of the plane. But the control room found out that the risk is too great, because the park is being repaired. The last chance to save passengers was landing on the water, in the Hudson, which separates Manhattan from New Jersey. This decision was forced and, according to experts, very difficult.

“The huge difficulty lies in the fact that the airbus, which Sally piloted, has engines located under the wings. When landing on the water, he had to make sure that the engines did not touch the water. Otherwise, the liner would simply bury its nose in the water. Therefore, the pilot had to do all to glide on the surface of the water for as long as possible, keeping the nose of the aircraft above the surface," professional pilots explain the intricacies of landing in the Hudson.

Another serious danger was represented by ships that the airbus could collide with. The low water temperature - now minus five degrees in the Hudson - and a strong current exacerbated the situation. It is not surprising that, upon learning of the successful landing, New York State Governor David Paterson angrily called what happened "a miracle over the Hudson."

However, there is one detail that Americans hardly remember today. About the panic that arose in Manhattan when people saw a liner falling on skyscrapers. About the rumors that appeared in the first hours after the disaster, about a possible "Arab trace" in this incident. However, the authorities reacted quickly, informing the population that the terrorists had nothing to do with this case.

Everything that follows is well known. In anticipation of rescuers, passengers climbed onto the wing of the aircraft. Five people who applied for medical care were taken to hospitals. According to Lorrie, the wife of pilot Sullenberger, he called her when it was all over, and briefly said: "There was an accident. But everything is over."

Mooring from the sky

On August 21, 1963, a Soviet aircraft made the world's first successful splashdown in Leningrad on a flight from Tallinn to Moscow..

Already during takeoff at the Tallinn airport, the commander of the Tu-124, Viktor Mostovoy, discovered that the front landing gear was jammed in a semi-retracted position.

Mostovoy reported on the radio about the problem to dispatchers. However, due to thickening fog, an emergency landing in Tallinn was banned. Mostovoy was offered to land the car on the spare unpaved runway of the Pulkovo airfield in Leningrad, - recalls Vladimir Dmitriev, Honored Pilot of the USSR. - While firefighters and doctors arrived at the place of the alleged landing of an emergency airliner, the plane circled over the city at an altitude of 400 meters, developing a fuel supply of up to one ton. Mostovoy received such an order from Georgy Narbut, the head of flights at Pulkovo Airport. Each lap took 15 minutes.

On the seventh lap, the flight mechanic reported to Mostovoy about the fuel supply, which remains more than necessary according to the instructions. And landing in violation of the rules with a margin of at least 1200-1300 kilograms of fuel threatened the passengers with death. "I'm going for one more lap," the commander of the ship announced on the radio to the ground. He did not suspect that the plane's fuel gauges were faulty. When the airport was 21 kilometers away, the fuel supply was exhausted: the aircraft's left engine stopped.

To shorten the distance to the airfield, the crew decided to fly over the historic center of the city. However, flying over the "headquarters of the revolution" - Smolny, the second engine also failed. Fortunately, the Neva was below, - says Dmitriev. - "Vitya, get on the water," Vasily Chechenov, the co-pilot, a former hydro-pilot, shouted to his comrade.

And then Mostovoy made the only right decision in the current situation: to land the plane on the surface of the water - between the Bolsheokhtinsky and Finland bridges. To avoid panic, the 27-year-old ship's commander ordered the crew members to distract the passengers with conversations. While Mostovoy was planning in a heavy car without fuel over the water surface, the stewards told the passengers about the weather in the city on the Neva.

The plane flew a couple of meters over the Alexander Nevsky bridge - at that time still under construction. Workers standing on complex metal structures then fell into the water in horror, - recalls Nadezhda Stepankova, an eyewitness to the events. - A few tens of meters from the Finland Bridge, the plane plopped into the river.

The passengers were happy. But their joy was premature. When landing, the Tu-124 received a significant hole and almost immediately began to take on water. Only thanks to the actions of Yuri Porshin, the captain of the tug, who hooked the metal cable to the pilots' helm and towed the aircraft to the shore, the plane did not sink to a depth of 13 meters.

It was "moored" to the berth of the Severny Press plant in such a way that one of the wings lay on land, forming a gangway, Stepankova recalls. - Passengers with children were the first to leave, followed by women, men with things and the crew. The aircraft commander was the last to land. He was very calm, but completely gray-haired.

Reward or punish? - such a question arose before the Main Directorate of the Civil air fleet USSR immediately after the accident.

Viktor Mostovoy was expelled from the Tallinn squadron, as they said - for sloppiness. Allegedly, through his fault, the Tu-124 with passengers on board at first almost collapsed on historical Center cities, and then - almost went to the bottom, - continues Vladimir Dmitriev. - Only after the scandal reached the Central Committee of the CPSU, and the heroism of the pilot became known in the West, Mostovoy was awarded the Order of the Red Star, and his crew members were awarded medals.

DOSSIER "RG"

The most amazing landings

July 17, 1972 Moscow. The Tu-134 aircraft of the State Research Institute of Civil Aviation performed test flights from the Sheremetyevo airfield. During the landing approach, two engines failed at the same time. The commander landed the aircraft on the water surface of the canal. Moscow. No harm done.

August 12, 1997. Thessaloniki. The Boeing-727-230 aircraft of the Greek airline Olympic Airways was performing a local passenger flight from Athens to Thessaloniki. The aircraft was flown by very experienced pilots (both captains of aircraft taken from other flights for this flight). The weather at the destination airport was the most difficult: a thunderstorm, wind gusts near the ground up to 28 knots, heavy clouds, heavy rain. The plane landed with a significant flight: after flying the first third of the runway, it rolled out of the runway. The nose of the plane hung over the coastline mediterranean sea. The aircraft received significant damage. The crew and passengers - 35 people - survived.

November 23, 1996. Comoros. The Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 767-260ER was on an international passenger flight from Addis Ababa bound for Abidjan. Shortly after entering air space Kenya, three terrorists hijacked the plane and demanded to fly to Australia. On approach to Comoros, the aircraft ran out of fuel, the engines stopped. The pilots attempted to make a controlled water landing in closed shallow water 500 meters from Le Galava beach. However, the left engine and wingtip hit the water and the aircraft was destroyed. Of the 175 people on board, 125 were killed.

March 22, 1998. Philippines. Philippine Airlines' newest A320-214 aircraft was operating a domestic passenger flight from Manila Airport to Bacolod Airport. The aircraft took off with the first engine thrust reverser deactivated. The flight went well. But during landing, due to asymmetric thrust, the plane "blew" to the right side of the runway. The plane collided with the airport fence and stopped in a small river. By happy accident none of the 130 people on board were injured. The plane was not subject to restoration.

, Saint Petersburg

It is unlikely that anyone dreams of being on an airplane flying with failed engines, caught in a storm or a strong side wind. But all this and much more happens from time to time with aircraft, and then the pilots have to use all their skills and a lot of physical strength to level the liner, bring it to the airfield and successfully land it without allowing human casualties. Next, we will talk about the 10 most incredible landings of aircraft.

1. Flight over the mouth of the volcano (1982)

Handing the passenger a glass of drink, the stewardess quietly looked out the window and made sure that the pilots were right. The engines of the liner glowed like strobe lights. And soon a suffocating smoke smelling of sulfur began to spread throughout the cabin. There were 15 crew members and 248 passengers on board the Boeing 747, and none of them noticed that the plane flew through a cloud of volcanic ash, suddenly thrown up by the awakened Indonesian volcano Galunggung. Tiny abrasive particles of ash damaged the skin of the aircraft and clogged its engines.
The plane flying from London to Auckland risked not making it. A huge liner with turned off engines was gliding over the ocean at night, and mountains rose directly in its course south coast islands of Java. It was necessary to quickly choose: to put the liner on the water or risk reaching the Jakarta airport, but for this it was necessary to overcome the approaching peaks. While the commander and the Indonesian controller calculated the distance and aerodynamic capabilities of the aircraft, the flight engineer and co-pilot continued to try to start the engines. They were lucky - the fourth engine was struggling, spitting out pumice, and still it worked! In the same way, it was possible to revive two more engines. With such thrust, it was already possible to reach the airfield, however, when the plane began to gradually descend for landing, the pilots noticed that the windshield, scratched by sharp particles, had become dull. In addition, there was no automatic landing at the Jakarta airport.
In the end, the British pilots were able to safely land the liner, looking at the area through a couple of tiny transparent sections preserved on the windshield. None of the people in this scrape was hurt.

2. Miracle on the Hudson (2009)

On January 15, 2009, an Airbus A-320 with 150 passengers on board took off from La Guardia Airport in the direction of New York - Seattle. Just a minute and a half later, he collided with a flock of birds, after which both engines of the liner instantly stalled. The plane at that moment had already risen to 970 meters. It was no longer possible to return back, since there would not be enough speed and altitude gained, which would be enough for 1.5 minutes of planning.
The first pilot made an instant decision to head for the Hudson River, which at this point is very wide and has a fairly straight course. It was important to reach the water surface and level the plane. As a result, the airbus plunged into the icy water and began to plan among the ice floes. Almost all people survived, and only the stewardess and 5 poorly fastened passengers were injured. They should be grateful to former military pilot Chesley Sullenberger, who once piloted the Phantom.

3. Heavenly Convertible (1988)

In 1988, an old Boeing made a local flight in Hawaii from Hilo to Honolulu. Due to a loosely closed door, part of the hull was destroyed (the wind “licked off” 35 sq. M of the skin). Explosive decompression occurred at an altitude of 7300 m at a speed of 500 km/h. Instantly, 90 lightly dressed passengers were hit by a wind 3 times faster than a hurricane, and even icy (-45 degrees). Although the pilots quickly dropped speed to 380 km / h and altitude, but in a short time, 65 people managed to frostbite and get various injuries. And after 12 minutes, with a deviation from the schedule of only 1 minute, the heavenly convertible landed in Honolulu. But there were no casualties here - the unfortunate stewardess was thrown overboard at the time of the destruction of the fuselage.

4. Race with death (1988)

On December 31, 1988, the Tu-134 crew was in such a hurry to celebrate the New Year that they began to descend along a too steep glide path, although the instruments screamed that the speed was too high, and the ground was approaching too fast. The pilots, defying all instructions, released the landing gear at a speed of 460 km / h, and it was pointless to release the flaps at such a speed, since they would simply be torn off by the air flow. At the time of touchdown, the speed was 415 km/h (permissible maximum 330 km/h). Thus, a landing speed record was set for a civil aviation liner.
The length of the runway was not enough for an aircraft landing at such a speed, and, despite all the efforts of the dashing crew, the aircraft proceeded further, stopping 1.5 meters from the landing on the safety strip. Surprisingly, the passengers were not injured, but the pilots had to answer to the fullest extent of the law.

5. Plane without a nose (2017)

The plane, heading from Istanbul to Cypriot Ercan, collided with strong winds and hail. At a 1.5-kilometer altitude, the nose and glass of the pilot's cabin were blown off. As a result, the pilots completely lost the opportunity to look ahead, and at the airport everyone was desperately waiting for the inevitable. First pilot - Ukrainian pilot Akopov decided to return. When landing, he tilted the side slightly so that he could see the strip through the side glass. The airport dispatchers and other crew members also worked well, as a result, the ship with 121 passengers and 6 crew members landed successfully.

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6. Taiga miracle (2010)

In September 2010, a TU-154B aircraft en route from Yakutia to Moscow landed in the Siberian wilderness. After flying for 3.5 hours after takeoff, the aircraft suddenly lost power, so the fuel pumps and on-board instruments froze, and the ability to control the elements of the wings was lost. In the fuselage there was a supply tank with 3.3 tons of operational kerosene, but this would only be enough for half an hour of flight. The pilots lowered the liner by 3000 meters in order to visually search for a suitable landing site. They checked the horizontality with a glass of water. They were lucky to notice a short (1350 m) concrete strip of the Izhma airport, and for the landing of the Tu-154B it was required 2 times longer. Moreover, it was abandoned back in 2003, using it only for landing helicopters. The matter was complicated by the fact that the pilots could not release the flaps, so the landing speed at 100 km / h exceeded the calculated one.
The pilots managed to land the car on "3 points", but then the poorly controlled plane rolled out into a low spruce forest, located 160 m further than the end of the concrete strip. Fortunately, none of the passengers and crew were hurt. Immediately, the plane was repaired on its own, and then it was able to fly to Samara for a detailed inspection.

7. Landing without a commander (1990)

On June 10, 1990, a British Airways plane took off from Birmingham for Malaga. After 13 minutes of flight, a poorly installed windshield fell out, as a result of which the air escaping from the aircraft picked up the commander and threw it halfway through the hole formed. The pilot was pressed against the fuselage outside the cockpit with his back, while his legs were stuck between the control panel and the helm. The cockpit door was also torn off, the fragments of which fell on the navigation and radio panels.
The flight attendant, who was in the cockpit, grabbed the commander, preventing him from taking off completely, and the co-pilot began an emergency descent and gave a distress signal. The co-pilot managed to land emergency liner in Southampton. All passengers and crew survived, only the commander and flight attendant were injured. As for the commander, he was found to have several fractures, hematomas and frostbite. The flight attendant froze his left eye, face and dislocated his shoulder.

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8. Incident in Leningrad (1963)

An aircraft flying from Tallinn to Moscow reported to the ground that, after takeoff, the nose landing gear was stuck in a half-retracted position. There was a landing "on the belly", and the nearest airport where such a trick could be created was the airport in Pulkovo, where the plane was sent. Having flown up to the airport, the plane began to circle over it, producing fuel, and in order to speed up the process, it did it at an altitude of 500 m. At the same time, the crew tried in every possible way to unlock the chassis with a metal pole. Carried away by such a thing, the crew did not notice how the left engine stopped due to lack of fuel.
The first and second pilots rushed to the controls, immediately received permission to fly over the city and headed straight for the runway. Then the second engine also froze, and there was not even a margin of altitude to leave the city. Then the crew commander took only Possible Solution- to land an emergency board on the water surface of the Neva. The plane flew over the Liteiny Bridge at an altitude of 90 m, over the Bolsheokhtinsky Bridge it had already dropped to 30 meters, just a few meters it flew over the Alexander Nevsky Bridge under construction and, almost hitting the tugboat, flopped into the water. The splashdown was soft - all passengers and crew members were alive.

9. Impressive Airbus landing in stormy weather (2017)

Strong winds often blow at the airport in Dusseldorf, Germany. Recently, the giant Airbus A380, owned by Emirates, had to land in such conditions. The approach itself to the ground in such conditions still goes more or less smoothly, but after the landing gear touches the runway, problems immediately begin. So this airbus landing has become unusual and difficult. To reduce the impact of strong side wind gusts, pilots are forced to land at an angle. When the pilot began to level the liner, a sudden strong gust of side wind began to rock the colossus from side to side. So the pilot aligns the ship, and it flaps its wings - a bewitching sight. Finally, the pilot managed to cope with the naughty giant and align his position with wind gusts reaching 22 m / s.

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10 Faulty Chassis (2016)

In Kazakhstan, in international airport the capital of the country of Astana, the Foker-100 aircraft without front landing gear was able to safely make an emergency landing. At the same time, none of the passengers and crew members in total 121 people were injured. The cause of the accident was a malfunction in the mechanism of the front landing gear. The aircraft commander had to land it without this rather important landing element. The front pillar did not fully come out of the hatch, so it was impossible to rely on it when landing. Eyewitnesses excitedly told how the plane, after touching the ground, pecked the ground with its nose and then gnashed on the concrete of the runway for hundreds of meters. From strong friction, sparks and black smoke fell from it. Fortunately, the plane did not catch fire. Surprisingly, after this landing, damage to the hull of the aircraft was minimal.

Tu-124 landing on the Neva became one of the first cases of successful splashdown passenger aircraft. The crew of the crashed liner, at the cost of incredible efforts, managed to land the plane in the very center of Leningrad. The accident was avoided and no one was hurt.

Circumstances of the accident

August 21, 1963 passenger airliner Aeroflot Tu-124 was preparing to make a routine regular flight Tallinn - Moscow. The aircraft was assigned to the Estonian squadron. The commander of the ship that day was an experienced pilot Viktor Yakovlevich Mostovoy. The crew included co-pilot Chechenov and flight engineer Tsarev.

The liner took off from the Ülemiste airport early in the morning, at 8.55, and headed for Moscow's Vnukovo airport. After a few minutes of flight, the pilots discovered that the front landing gear jammed and it remained in a semi-retracted state. Returning to was not possible, as it was shrouded in dense fog. It was extremely dangerous to make an emergency landing in such conditions. The crew was ordered to fly to Leningrad and try to land there.

The fact is that an emergency with a faulty chassis is possible only on a special, plowed dirt strip. It allows you to minimize the risk of sparks during landing, which means avoiding fire or explosion of the aircraft. Such a band was in Leningrad. Pulkovo immediately took all the necessary measures in order to take an emergency board. In a short time, all emergency services of the airfield were brought to full readiness.

Over Leningrad

The liner flew up to Leningrad at about 11.00. Pulkovo specialists asked the plane to fly over the airport in order to assess its damage from the ground. Visual inspection confirmed that the nose landing gear was in a semi-retracted state.

The crew was ordered to prepare for an emergency landing. However, before committing it, it was necessary to develop excess fuel. The plane began to make circles over the city at an altitude of 500 meters.

Meanwhile, the flight mechanic Tsarev tried with all his might to free the jammed landing gear. To do this, he had to cut a hole in the floor of the aircraft cabin and, using a pole, manually, try to bring the rack to its normal position. All efforts were in vain.

The plane managed to make 8 circles over the city, when at 12.10 it turned out that there was no longer enough fuel for landing in Pulkovo. Suddenly, the left engine stalled. In connection with the complications that arose, the crew was given permission to fly directly over the city center in order to shorten the distance to the airport.

However, at the very moment when the plane was directly over Smolny, the right engine also stopped. The liner began to quickly lose altitude, and everyone who was at that moment in the center of Leningrad was under threat. In such emergency the commander, on the advice of co-pilot Chechenev, a former naval aviation pilot, decides to land directly on the Neva.

emergency landing

Mostovoy ordered the crew to distract passengers, and he, alone, began to plan over the city.

The plane flew over Foundry bridge at a height of 90 meters and managed to pass Bolsheokhtinsky just 40 meters from the water, miraculously not catching its high farms. Ahead was under construction. When the liner flew over it, the workers from the scaffolding jumped into the water in horror.

At the cost of the incredible efforts of the commander, the aircraft managed to successfully splash down a few tens of meters before the supports of the next, Finnish railway bridge. They say that Mostovoy turned gray in these few minutes.

The landing of the Tu-124 on the Neva was completed successfully, and the aircraft remained afloat, but due to damage received during landing, water began to flow into the fuselage. The old Burevestnik tugboat, which accidentally passed by and miraculously avoided a collision with an aircraft, managed to drag the sinking liner closer to the shore, to the territory of the Severny Press plant. By another lucky chance, wooden rafts stood at this place near the shore. The wing of the aircraft lay down on these rafts and formed a natural ladder along which all passengers and crew safely went ashore.

In total, there were 44 passengers on the plane, including two children, and 7 crew members. There was no panic, but once on the shore, people gradually began to realize that they had recently been on the verge of death. The crew of the plane was immediately sent for interrogation to the KGB, and the passengers were taken to Pulkovo, from where they were returned to Tallinn on the first flight.

Causes of the accident

The Tu-124 landing on the Neva was the first successful splashdown of a large passenger aircraft. But what caused the accident, which almost turned into a terrible disaster?

Tu-124 by that time was the latest brainchild of the Tupolev design bureau. It was designed and tested in a short time, and therefore had many minor flaws. One of them played a fatal role in the fate of the Estonian side. It turned out that during takeoff in Tallinn, the ball bolt of the front landing gear fell off the plane, it was later found on runway. Without this small but important detail, the front landing gear of the aircraft could not take its normal position, and it jammed. According to experts, landing with such a malfunction threatened to overturn the car. In such a situation, a successful splashdown of the aircraft may have been the only way to save the lives of passengers.

The second reason for the almost unleashed tragedy was the malfunction of the fuel gauge, which gave incorrect data on the amount of fuel on board. This common defect in many aircraft of that time was well known to all pilots, and many of them asked to refuel the aircraft a little big amount fuel than expected. However, this did not happen that day. In addition, before an emergency landing, it was necessary to work out maximum amount fuel, leaving only a little to reach the airport, and here the error in the readings of the device turned out to be fatal.

The fate of the plane

After all the people left the board, a special steamer was used to pump water out of the plane. But still, he could not cope with the rapidly incoming water, and soon the Tu-124 sank. The next day, pontoons were brought under the plane, it was raised from the bottom and towed along the Neva to the west Vasilyevsky Island where the military unit was located at that time. After inspection, the aircraft was written off due to damage.

His end was sad. The cockpit was cut off and sent as a flight simulator to the Kirsanov aviation school, located in the Tambov region. Beautiful soft chairs were sold to everyone at a price equal to the cost of a bottle of vodka. And the remains of the fuselage rusted for a long time on the banks of the Skipper channel, until they were cut and sold for scrap.

The fate of the crew

Initially, in the KGB and the Main Directorate of Civil Aviation, Mostovoy's heroic act was regarded as sloppiness, they severely reprimanded him and fired him from the squadron. However, due to the noise raised in the foreign press, the authorities changed their anger to mercy. They even wanted to award the commander of the ship with the Order of the Red Star, but the order was never signed. In the end, Khrushchev decided not to reward, but not to punish the pilot.

The entire crew was soon allowed to fly again. The co-pilot Chechenov after some time himself became the commander. Mostovoy also continued to work, but already as part of the Krasnodar squadron. In the early 90s, he and his family emigrated to Israel, where he was forced to leave flying and work as a simple worker in a factory. He passed away from cancer in 1997.

Consequences of the accident

Despite the fact that the landing of the Tu-124 on the Neva was successful, after this incident, all airliners were strictly forbidden to fly over the center of Leningrad. This ban is still in effect.

Mostovoy's amazing experience made a strong impression on pilots all over the world. An emergency landing of an aircraft on water is now being practiced on simulators in many airlines of the world. This is what allowed the American pilot to successfully land his emergency Boeing on the Hudson in 1997. Unfortunately, in our country, such training is not carried out.

August 1963 was remembered for a long time by many Leningraders who witnessed the unique landing. Many have seen the silver Tu-124 on the Neva with their own eyes, and this sight, of course, remains one of the most vivid memories of their lives.

Successful implementation forced landing on water depends mainly on the following factors:

from the state of the sea and the strength of the wind; on the type of aircraft; from the skill of the commander. The behavior of the aircraft at the time of landing may be different depending on the state of the sea. Landing an aircraft parallel to the line of the swell crest, i.e., perpendicular to the direction of its movement, is sometimes almost the same as landing an aircraft on a smooth surface of water. When landing an aircraft perpendicular to the line of the swell crest or when landing on rough seas, the aircraft is subjected to large overloads. By choosing the correct landing approach course according to sea conditions, the commander can to some extent reduce the danger associated with landing an aircraft in rough sea conditions.

The second factor influencing the successful implementation of an emergency landing of an aircraft on water is the type of aircraft. The commander cannot have a direct influence on this factor, but knowing the characteristics of his aircraft and its data, as well as its expected behavior when landing on water, he can take certain measures in order to weaken the effect of its negative qualities and make the most of its positive properties. In advance, you can always find out data about the behavior of a particular type of aircraft when landing on water.

The following are general data that apply to all types passenger aircraft.

The heavier the aircraft, the better it is adapted for landing on water. Modern passenger aircraft have, as a rule, satisfactory characteristics in terms of their suitability for landing on water. In passenger aircraft, the lower part of the fuselage, which is most often damaged during landing on water, has greater strength.

The protruding parts of the aircraft have a different effect on the damage to the aircraft when landing it on the water. The undercarriage must always be retracted, as otherwise the aircraft will be subjected to sudden surges and g-forces, which can cause wing failure.

When landing on a turbulent water surface against the direction of the swell, significant overloads should be expected. The length of the run in this case depends on whether the plane bounces off the water when it hits a wave or not.

The safest landing of an aircraft in rough seas is to land in a direction parallel to the swell wave line, or, in other words, in a direction perpendicular to the direction of the swell. Landing conditions in this case are closest to landing conditions on a smooth water surface.

Of the three factors influencing the successful execution of a forced landing of a multi-seat passenger aircraft on water, namely the state of the sea, the type of aircraft and

the art of Piloting, the latter factor being of the most decisive importance. The ability of the commander and co-pilot to safely land the aircraft on the water will largely depend further fate crew and passengers.

On most modern aircraft, it is necessary to land on the water at the lowest possible airspeed provided, however, that this does not result in excessive nose-lifting of the aircraft.

After the first impact on the water of the aircraft, the commander in most cases is almost unable to control the aircraft, since he ceases to obey the rudders.

Landing on a smooth surface of the sea, including in the presence of swell, must be carried out with great care, since in these conditions it is very difficult to determine the height above the water, as a result of which the pilot can very easily make mistakes. Therefore, if possible, the pilot should first pass at a low altitude over the intended landing site, dropping some small objects into the sea, by which he can determine the height and land on the second run.

Scale for determining the wind speed according to the state of the sea surface during wind waves.

ASSESSMENT OF THE SUITABILITY OF CLOSED WATER SPACES FOR LANDING. FORCED LANDING ON THE RIVER

The most convenient for forced landing on the water are closed water basins, such as lakes, rivers, harbors, bays, or bodies of water surrounded by several islands.

If conditions permit, it is necessary to fly over the intended landing site to make sure that there are no obstacles on the surface of the water:

• pitfalls; boats, rafts;
• buoys, piles or any other items that could damage the aircraft.

After the pilot is satisfied that there are no obstacles on the surface of the water for landing, he must choose a course for the approach, taking into account the actual state of the water surface and the direction of the wind.

The area of ​​water chosen for landing must be at least 1.5 km long and 90 m wide.

The approach direction should be chosen taking into account the direction of the wind, the direction of the river flow and its depth. If the current of the river is not very strong, and the wind direction does not coincide with the most favorable approach direction, then the landing should be made into the wind. If the direction of the river flow and the direction of the wind are the same, then the landing should be made against the wind and against the current.

If the direction of the current and the direction of the wind are opposite, then you should land against the wind. -

The general rule for landing on the surface of a river is the following: with enough strong wind you should £ ignore the weak current of the river and land against the wind. The landing should be calculated so that at the end of the water run you will be close to the shore, at the pier or aground.

In order to determine the magnitude and direction of movement of the main, largest swell at sea from the air, it is necessary to fly at an altitude of about 600 m (from a low altitude, the main swell is not always visible). The direction of movement of weaker systems of swell and wind waves is determined from the height of low-level flight. ^

Overwhelming majority ocean waves has a height of 3-4 m, and waves 7-8 m high are rare. Due to interference, or superposition of waves, waves following one another can differ dramatically in height. This can be clearly seen by watching the waves crashing on the shore. Three or four large waves are usually followed by a series of relatively small waves, after which again come big waves etc. Thus, even in the case of a very rough sea, there are always relatively calmer places on its surface, which is very important for the commander and co-pilot to know in case of a forced landing.

If it is necessary to land at sea with complex waves, i.e., in the presence of several different swell systems, then for landing, a heading should be chosen such that the aircraft is not moving directly into any of the swell systems and that the headwind is used to the maximum.

When choosing a landing course, it is also necessary to take into account the location of the entrance doors and emergency hatches on the aircraft. When placing doors on one side of the aircraft fuselage (Tu-104, Tu-124, Il-18, etc.), landing parallel to the swell crest should be done in such a way that the swell wave (or wind wave) runs onto the starboard side.

In this case, to evacuate passengers and crew members to inflatable life rafts, you can use the front doors emergency hatches left side.

For Tu-114, Il-62, Tu-154, Tu-134, etc. aircraft, having exits on both sides of the fuselage, when landing on the water parallel to the swell crest, it does not really matter which side of the fuselage the swell wave or wind wave, but after landing on the water, the pilot must assess the position of the aircraft on the water and the possibility of opening doors and hatches so that water cannot enter the aircraft.

TECHNIQUE AND PROCEDURE FOR FORCED LANDING ON WATER AND USE OF LIFE-SAVING APPLIANCES

The forced landing of a passenger land aircraft on a rough sea surface must be carried out in such a way that at the moment of touching the water the nose of the aircraft is raised. To do this, you need to make a normal landing approach with retracted flaps and landing gear. Engines should run at low speeds. At a height of about 1.5-2 m above the water, level the aircraft and, keeping its nose slightly raised, continue to fly to the intended landing site at a speed exceeding the critical one by 15-20 km/h.

Having reached the selected landing site, you should slightly reduce the gas and lift the nose of the aircraft so as not to completely lose speed. Although the nose of the aircraft must be held up at the time of landing

position, during the run it should be lowered, since with a lowered nose the aircraft will stop faster, because the surface of the aircraft in contact with water will increase; the aircraft will break away from the wave at a lower angle of attack, as a result of which it will gain less height. To keep the nose of the aircraft in the desired position during the run, the pilot must quickly respond to any change in the position of the aircraft, operating the elevator.

The length of an aircraft's run during landing is directly dependent on the weight of the aircraft and its speed, or, in other words, on its stock of kinetic energy at the time of landing.

When landing on water at night at an altitude of 100-150 m, it is necessary to turn on the headlights and focus all attention on determining the height of the aircraft's leveling before splashdown, preventing it from hitting the water or losing speed. It is not recommended to turn on the headlights in fog and clouds.

On a moonlit night, you should land in the direction of the moon. It has been established that the assessment of the state of the sea, made by observations during the full moon, is approximately correct. However, under these conditions, the sea is clearly visible only in one specific direction, and the sea seems calmer than it really is. stripes.

Launching and boarding inflatable life rafts

As soon as the aircraft finally stops on the water after landing, the ship's commander must:

• assess the position of the aircraft on the water and the possibility of opening the side doors and emergency hatches so that water cannot enter the aircraft;
• give the command to open doors and emergency hatches;
• give the command to launch the rafts;
• prevent the accumulation of passengers in one place in order to avoid dangerous trims on the nose or tail of the aircraft;
• organize a quick disembarkation of passengers with previously put on life jackets;
• be the last to leave the aircraft, take up residence on a rescue helot with an emergency radio station and lead the rescue of passengers;
• instruct to withdraw the rafts from the aircraft by 50-100 m.

On most modern passenger aircraft, the fastenings of the rafts inside the aircraft are released manually and the rafts are brought to those doors and hatches that lie above the sea water level and which are most expedient to open in a particular situation and then launch the rafts into the water without flooding the aircraft with sea water.

Notes. 1. The water level beyond the Aircraft Grade must be determined at those doors and hatches, without opening them, that have porthole windows, and choose doors and hatches, the lower edge of which lies above the level of the outboard ox or the upper crest of the wave.

Notes 2. In heavy seas and storms, it is necessary to open mainly emergency hatches above the wing from a safer lee side. In a storm with a large wave, emergency hatches in the upper part of the fuselage of the aircraft can be used to leave (on those aircraft where such hatches are available). In this case, it is necessary to take into account the great difficulty of exiting and boarding rafts through these hatches.

Having received the command to launch the rafts into the water, crew members and flight attendants, provided for in a pre-arranged schedule, or plan, for emergency evacuation on the water, open the appropriate doors and hatches based on the situation and, having previously attached to a special bracket at the door or hatch the end of the starting painter (rope) laid in a special pocket of the raft package, the raft is dropped into the water.

Notes. 1. Rafts that are not attached to the aircraft and dropped into the water can be carried hundreds of meters away from the aircraft by wind and current, and people will not be able to swim to the rafts and use them for water rescue.

Notes 2. If the raft is not (for whatever reason) attached to the shackle at the door or hatch, the end of the launching painter should be held firmly in the hands of the crew member (flight attendant) supervising the boarding of the rafts at the exit, or a physically strong passenger who is attracted by the crew. to help with the evacuation.

After the package with the raft is dropped into the water and floats, it remains to open the package and inflate the raft. For this purpose, a starting painter is used, connected to the exhaust cable of the package and the starting device of the gas cylinder fixed on the raft.

The length of the starting painter of the raft is always several times higher than the height of the lower edge of the door (hatch) from the water level, and therefore it is necessary to first select the slack of the painter. When the slack is taken up and the painter is pulled tight, you need to sharply pull the painter several times. After several jerks, opening the package and triggering the launcher, carbon dioxide from the cylinder begins to flow into the inflatable chambers of the raft and the raft inflates in a few tens of seconds. As soon as the inflatable arches (or the central post) supporting the awning rise, the raft is ready to receive those who are escaping.

The painter is firmly connected to the raft and will keep it near the aircraft until the rescuers land and cut the painter. The tensile strength of the painter (40-4-60 kG) is calculated in such a way that if people do not have time to cut the painter and the sinking plane begins to drag the raft along, the painter will break. A raft with a full number of people will stay afloat. However, it is better to avoid such a situation and one should strive to move away from the aircraft before it is flooded, so as not to fall into the funnel formed when the aircraft is immersed in water.

Note. In the event of an aircraft emergency landing on land in a desert, taiga, arctic, sparsely populated area at any time of the year, inflatable rafts can be used on land to protect people from rain, sun, wind and cold until approach rescue teams. In this case, an emergency supply of food and equipment intended for inflatable rafts must be used in relation to a particular situation.

In an inflatable raft that is afloat and held by a painter at the exit or hatch above the wing, rescuers can get directly from the aircraft through open door or hatch, as well as from the wing, to which people go through the side emergency hatches in the passenger cabin. If this “dry” method cannot be applied in the current situation, you should jump into the water feet down with an inflated vest, swim up to the raft and climb into it along an inflatable or soft tape ladder through one of the two inlets in the raft tent. It should be borne in mind that people in dry clothes have greater resilience in the conditions of staying on inflatable life rafts. Therefore, it is necessary, if possible, to avoid getting wet clothes when boarding rafts of passengers and crew members.

In some cases (when there is little time) you will have to inflate the rafts by jumping into the water. When deploying and inflating life rafts, pay attention to Special attention to ensure that the rafts and escaping people do not get on the sharp edges of the fuselage and other parts of the aircraft.

When helping the wounded to leave the plane, you should always take their life-saving equipment (jacket) from the plane.

When landing on rafts from the wing of an aircraft, it must be remembered that it is extremely difficult to stay on the wing when the sea is rough (it can be washed away by a wave). Therefore, it is necessary to use a lifeline attached to the hatch above the wing to keep people on the wing until the inflatable raft is deployed at the wing edge.

When filling the first and subsequent rafts with passengers, if the rafts descend from one exit (hatch) one after another, the painter of the first raft is disconnected from the aircraft and attached to the second raft.

Then the first raft is pushed off from the exit (hatch) of the aircraft, in order not to interfere with the landing of people in the second, third, etc. rafts.

At the end of the landing, all rafts, successively fastened together by painters 8-10 m long, are retracted from the aircraft by 50-100 At, so as not to fall into the funnel from the sinking aircraft. To do this, people on the last raft, which is attached to the exit (hatch) with a mooring painter, after the crew commander sits on the raft, who has checked that all the people have left the plane, give up the mooring painter and the rafts move away from the aircraft under the influence of wind, waves, currents.

The commander takes over the overall management of the rafts, making sure that all people are picked up from the water, all rafts are interconnected by 8-10 m long painters and all the necessary equipment is on the rafts. I

If possible, the crew leader should go to the raft, where there is a radio operator with an emergency radio station.

If the aircraft continues to float on the surface of the water, then the rafts should remain near the aircraft at a distance of 50-100 m so that rescue ships, aircraft and helicopters can detect them faster.

The management of a life raft filled with passengers is carried out by the senior member of the crew, who is on the raft. If there is not a single crew member (flight attendant) on the raft, then the passengers choose the eldest from their midst.

In order to approach another life raft, it is necessary to throw the floating anchor of the raft for the entire length of the painter (rope) towards the other raft and then pull your raft by the painter in the direction of the thrown floating anchor. If the distance between the rafts is significant, the floating anchor will have to be cast repeatedly. If the raft has two anchors, it is better to use both floating anchors (from the same entrance) to bring the rafts together. After approaching, it is necessary to connect the rafts with painters (ropes) laid on the bottom of the raft.

The distance between the connected rafts should be at least 8-10 m, and if the sea is restless - 10-12 m. approaching search and rescue aircraft, ships, etc.

To eliminate gas leakage from a damaged buoyancy chamber of a raft, a metal plug should be used for a large gap, and for a small puncture - rubber stopper. Using a plug, push the bottom plate of the plug through the gap in the raft chamber, cover it with the top plate, tighten the wing nut and break the wire holding the nut to the plates.

Using a rubber plug, you need to screw it into the hole (puncture, small tear), then, as soon as possible, prepare a patch from the package with raft repair equipment to replace the plugs and plugs.

It is necessary to close the entrance curtains of the raft when all the rescued people are placed on the raft. Keep the raft curtains closed in cold or damp weather. Brief instruction with explanatory drawings is placed "on the inner surface of the tent of the raft. The text is approximately as follows:

Immediate action in cold weather.

• a) untie the strings (strings) that tighten the entrance curtains into bundles;
• b) raise the entrance curtains by pulling down the cords. After that, fasten the curtains with loops on the toggles (oblong buttons);
• c) from time to time to avoid poisoning carbon dioxide exhaled by people, ventilate the under-tent space by slightly opening the entrance curtains;
• d) inflate the bottom of the raft. The pump or bellows for inflating the bottom is stored in the package with the raft repair equipment. In order to inflate the bottom with a pump, it is necessary to attach a hose to the pump hole farthest from the handle.