32 passengers and 5 crew died when an Uzbekistan Airways YAK-40 from Termez hit a stanchion of approach lights, flipped, and crashed into a wall at the Tashkent airport. Among the dead are a Canadian aid worker and the highest ranking UN official in Uzbekistan, Richard Conroy of the UNDP. The plane crashed after two landing attempts in heavy fog. The plane was also nearing the end of its operational lifespan.
Uzbekistan Airways is one of the better airlines of the developing world, and not a bad way to get to Tashkent. They use Boeings and Airbuses on their longer international flights and have well-trained maintenace crews and great staff. It’s a different story on regional flights, where Soviet aircraft are used and you can really tell you are going on a wing and a prayer (with a splash of vodka). The YAK-40 is the second most frightening plane I’ve ever been in, only topped by some kind of prop-driven Soviet aircraft I took from Bishkek to Tashkent.
Here’s more on the YAK-40′s crash history
This post was written by...
Nathan Hamm – author of 2973 posts on Registan.net.
Nathan is the Founding Editor and Publisher of Registan.net, which he launched in 2003. He was a Peace Corps Volunteer in Uzbekistan 2000-2001 and received his MA in Central Asian Studies from the University of Washington in 2007. Since 2007, he has worked full-time as an analyst, consulting with private and government clients on Central Asian affairs, specializing in how socio-cultural and political factors shape risks and opportunities and how organizations can adjust their strategic and operational plans to account for these variables. Nathan is currently seeking research, analysis, and consulting opportunities. He can be contacted via Twitter or email.
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