On October 13, 1977, a Yakovlev Yak-40 operating as Aeroflot Flight 75 had its cargo hatch opened mid-flight, resulting in 2 people being killed.
Aircraft The Yakovlev Yak-40 (registration CCCP-87948) was manufactured in 1976 and was equipped with three Ivchenko AI-25 turbofan engines. The airliner was powered by three Ivchenko AI-25 turbofan engines. At the time of the accident, it had accumulated 2,486 flight hours and 1,704 cycles
Accident The aircraft took off from Rostov-on-Don Airport en route to Mykolaiv Airport. During the cruise phase, the cargo hatch opened unexpectedly, resulting in the ejection of items from seats 2A, 2B, 3A, and 3B. In this incident, a mother and her child were ejected from the aircraft and did not survive, while a male passenger managed to hold on to his seat with the assistance of other passengers. “The flight then returned to Rostov-on-Don Airport for an emergency landing. The man was compensated 100 rubles for his clothes.
Aftermath
Investigation An investigation commission concluded that the incident occurred because the flight engineer failed to secure the cargo hatch prior to the commencement of the passenger flight
Burial The deceased—a mother and her child—were interred in a public cemetery.
Aircraft On 31 October 1979, the same aircraft was involved in another incident when an engine failure necessitated an emergency landing.
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