On 15 August 2019, Ural Airlines Flight 178, a scheduled passenger flight from Moscow to Simferopol, suffered engine damage and made a forced landing in a cornfield after takeoff from Zhukovsky International Airport. The aircraft, an Airbus A321 with 226 passengers and 7 crew members, was taking off from Runway 12 when it struck several birds during rotation, causing damage to the engines. Due to the resulting loss of thrust and improper actions by the flight crew, the A321 failed to gain sufficient airspeed and altitude to climb safely. The aircraft belly landed and slid across a cornfield before stopping with substantial damage. All 233 occupants survived the accident, although 28 suffered injuries, 3 of them serious.
In the immediate aftermath of the accident, citizens and the media praised the crew for managing to land and evacuate the aircraft without any fatalities. Comparisons were made to the 2009 US Airways Flight 1549 accident, which ditched in the Hudson River following bird strikes and dual engine failure with no fatalities. The event was referred to as the Miracle in the Cornfield by Russian citizens and media. The Kremlin awarded the flight crew with Hero of the Russian Federation, the country's highest civilian honor, and the cabin crew with the Order of Courage.
The accident investigation was conducted by the Interstate Aviation Committee (MAK). During the investigation, they found several factors that caused the accident. Several illegal waste dumps around the airport attracted birds, airport management had failed to implement bird control procedures properly, and the existing guidance on the safety hazards of birds was insufficient. Regarding the accident sequence, the MAK found that after the bird strike and engine damage, the crew failed to apply proper procedures in relation to the engines' failure to produce sufficient thrust. The landing gear was kept extended, the engine thrust was not properly managed, the pitch was at too high of an angle, and the airspeed was not properly tracked. As a result, the aircraft did not have enough thrust to overcome drag, and it impacted the cornfield shortly after takeoff.
Background
Aircraft
The aircraft involved, manufactured in 2004, was an Airbus A321-211 with registration VQ-BOZ. It was powered by two CFM International CFM56-5B engines. At the time of the accident, the aircraft had a total of 48,980 airframe hours and 20,132 flights.
Crew and passengers
Two pilots were in command of the flight. The captain and pilot-in-command was 41-year-old Damir Yusupov, who graduated from the Buguruslan Flight School of Civil Aviation, in Buguruslan, Russia, in 2013. He also received a degree in air navigation from the Ulyanovsk Institute of Civil Aviation in Ulyanovsk, Russia. Yusupov had 4,275 flight hours, 4,125 of which were on the Airbus A320 family, and 824 were as captain. He had a valid medical certificate, a valid air transport pilot certificate, and was not involved in any prior incidents.
The first officer and second-in-command was 23-year-old Georgy Murzin, who also graduated from the Buguruslan Flight School of Civil Aviation in 2017. Murzin had a total of 780 flight hours, 624 of which were on the Airbus A320 family. He also had valid medical and air transport pilot certificates and was not involved in any prior incidents.
In addition to the two flight crew members, five flight attendants were on board. 226 passengers were on the flight: 221 from Russia, 2 from Kazakhstan, 2 from Belarus and 1 from Ukraine.
Accident
On 15 August 2019, VQ-BOZ was scheduled to fly for Ural Airlines as flight 178 from Zhukovsky International Airport in Moscow to Simferopol International Airport in Simferopol. The crew arrived at the aircraft one and a half hours before the planned departure time of 6:10 am. Yusupov spoke with the aircraft's previous flight crew, who told him that the aircraft was in working order. At 5:55, Yusupov and Murzin began their pre-flight briefing, which included a discussion on rejected takeoff and engine failure after V1, but did not include remarks on the threat of birds. The crew also discussed how they would only address items on the electronic centralised aircraft monitor (ECAM) after climbing 400 ft (120 m) above ground level. At 6:05, air traffic control (ATC) gave the crew clearance to push back from their current position, which started one minute later. Both engines started during the push back, and the flaps extended to the configuration 1 (CONF1) position of 10°. ATC then gave the crew clearance to follow an escort vehicle to Runway 12. After being cleared to enter the runway at 6:11, Yusupov briefly mentioned a flock of birds that he saw, but continued to taxi into position for takeoff. One minute later, at 6:12:58, ATC cleared the flight for takeoff and cautioned them about "isolated bird activity." The V1 speed and VR speed were 166 kn (307 km/h), and the V2 speed was 168 kn (311 km/h).
As the aircraft accelerated, the presence of birds alarmed Yusupov, and he called out, "Come on, fly past, bird, fuck," but continued with the takeoff. Murzin soon announced, "100 knots" as the plane passed that speed, and Yusupov replied, "Checked." As the aircraft continued accelerating down the runway, Murzin exclaimed "Fucking hell, fuck" in response to the birds. At 6:13:40, he then called out "V1, rotate." Yusupov moved his side-stick back to start rotation at an airspeed of 181 kn (335 km/h). As soon as the aircraft lifted off the runway, several gulls— 25 to 30 according to Yusupov's estimation— flew in front of the aircraft. The left engine subsequently ingested at least three birds, one large, and the right engine ingested at least one bird. The recorded vibrations on both engines increased to the maximum measurable value and stayed at it for the rest of the flight. The N1 fan rotation speed of the left engine decreased to near idle while the right engine's N1 reduced to a lesser extent. An erroneous "ENG 1 REVERSE UNLOCKED" warning appeared on the ECAM after a bird struck a sensor, causing the sensor to falsely indicate that the thrust reverser on the left engine was unlocked.
Four seconds after rotation, Murzin called out "Positive," referring to the positive rate of climb. However, he did not include "climb," the standard phrase that Yusupov was expecting, which would have alerted him to raise the landing gear. As a result, the landing gear stayed down for most of the flight, resulting in significantly more drag. Yusupov pitched the nose up to 12–13°, and the airspeed reached 183 kn (339 km/h) before decreasing. Due to the reduced thrust in the left engine, the aircraft started to yaw to the left. Initially, Yusupov did not use the rudder pedals to counteract this movement. When he started to deflect the rudder pedals to the right, he did not use the rudder trim. Yusupov engaged the autopilot three seconds later at 6:13:59 as the aircraft was passing through 230 ft (70 m). The autopilot automatically reduced the pitch to 6° to reduce the ongoing decrease in airspeed. Immediately after the engagement, Yusupov announced, "ECAM action," despite being below the previously discussed altitude of 400 ft (120 m), the minimum altitude to respond to ECAM messages. Murzin, reading the ECAM, said, "Engine one reverse unlocked, thrust levers one idle, confirm thrust," calling for the left engine thrust lever to be moved to idle. As the altitude peaked at 315 ft (96 m) at 6:14:04, Yusupov responded with "check." Two seconds later, the autopilot disconnected, causing a red "AP OFF" warning to appear on the ECAM and a continuous aural alert to sound. Both warnings remained on until the end of the flight. Murzin did not move the left thrust lever to idle when instructed to by Yusupov.
Soon after the autopilot disconnected, an enhanced ground proximity warning system (EGPWS) warning called out "don't sink" as the aircraft descended. In reaction, Yusupov pulled up on his side-stick, and the aircraft's pitch varied between 8.5° and 13° nose up. While this temporarily resulted in a reduction in descent rate, the airspeed continued to decrease. He then attempted to call ATC about their situation by transmitting, "Pan-pan, pan-pan, pan-pan, Sverdlovsk," but never finished his message. At the same time, his input on the rudder pedals lessened, the aircraft started to yaw back left, and drag increased. Both thrust levers were advanced to TOGA power at 6:14:20 while passing the 290 ft (90 m) mark. The left engine did not respond, but the right engine did; the N1 of the engine initially reached 96% before fluctuating between 78–96%. At the same time, several banging sounds came from the right engine, showing symptoms of a compressor stall. This issue reduced the thrust from the right engine, although it remained in the same condition for the rest of the flight. Nine seconds after the thrust levers were advanced into TOGA, Yusupov informed Murzin that the autopilot had disconnected and instructed him to watch the airspeed. Murzin did not reply, nor did he call out the decreasing airspeed. Yusupov then reported the emergency to ATC and transmitted, "Pan-pan, pan-pan, pan-pan, Sverdlovsk 178, one engine failure." He then ordered Murzin to request a return to the airport, which the controller granted, but the crew did not discuss how they would return and never attempted to do so.
At 6:14:47 and descending below 240 ft (70 m) with an airspeed of 152 kn (282 km/h), the left engine thrust lever was idled. The descent rate at this point was 400–600 ft/s (120–180 m/s). Murzin, warning Yusupov of the decreasing altitude, called out, "Altitude, altitude." Yusupov reacted by pulling up on his side-stick to a pitch of 12°. At this point, the Airbus A321's alpha protection system — designed to protect against high angles of attack (AOA) and aerodynamic stalls — was activated, preventing the AOA from increasing any further despite Yusupov's continued inputs. The EGPWS then issued a "terrain ahead, pull up" warning. Yusupov reacted by pulling his side-stick as far back as possible and did so for the rest of the flight. Descending below 120 ft (40 m) at 6:15:10, Yusupov, having just noticed the still-extended landing gear, raised it without communicating with Murzin in hopes of returning to the airport. Despite pulling his side-stick fully up, the alpha protection system kept the AOA at αMAX of 15.5° with a pitch of 13°. There was no preparation for or discussion between the crew about the imminent landing; no brace command was issued, the flaps were not extended beyond CONF1, and the engines were kept running.
The aircraft touched down in a cornfield at 6:15:17 at a speed of 135 kn (250 km/h), 16,240 ft (4,950 m) from the end of Runway 12 and to the left of its centerline. The right engine nacelle first made contact with the ground, followed shortly by the lower fuselage and left engine nacelle. The aircraft slid across the ground, bending corn stalks due to the thrust from the right engine. After travelling over a watery ditch, it stopped 17,400 ft (5,300 m) from the end of Runway 12 with no post-crash fire.
After the aircraft came to a stop, the crew reported the accident to ATC. The flight attendants immediately started the evacuation by opening the emergency exits and deploying all eight evacuation slides. They instructed passengers by loudspeaker to leave their hand luggage on the plane. All passengers and crew were successfully evacuated. Within several minutes of the accident, various rescue services from Zhukovsky Airport and other Moscow-based emergency services arrived at the site to transport the passengers and crew back to the airport on buses.
All 233 passengers and crew survived the accident. Seventy-eight passengers, including nineteen children, received medical attention after the accident. Thirty-two passengers, including ten children, were taken to Ramenskoe Central Municipal Hospital and Zhukovskiy City Clinical Hospital. Thirty of them were treated and released, while two adults were hospitalized. In total, twenty-eight people sustained injuries; twenty-five minor injuries and three serious injuries, including First Officer Murzin, who fractured a vertebra. Four passengers were injured in the evacuation, while all the other injuries occurred during the impact.
Reactions
Shortly after the accident, Ural Airlines released a statement on Twitter stating: "Flight U6178 Zhukovsky-Simferopol on departure from Zhukovsky sustained multiple bird strikes to the aircraft engines. The aircraft made an emergency landing. There were no injuries to the passengers and crew." The airline praised the professionalism of the pilots.
On social media, immediate comparisons were made between the accident and US Airways Flight 1549, which ditched on the Hudson River after it struck a flock of birds and suffered a dual engine failure. It was dubbed by Russian media and citizens as the "Miracle in the Cornfield," paralleling the "Miracle on the Hudson" in the United States. The day after the accident, Russian president Vladimir Putin announced that Captain Yusupov and First Officer Murzin had been awarded the Hero of the Russian Federation, Russia's highest civilian honor, for "courage and heroism shown in the performance of official duty in extreme conditions." All flight attendants were awarded the Order of Courage for "courage and selflessness shown in the performance of official duty in extreme conditions."
Investigation
The Interstate Aviation Committee (Russian: Межгосударственный авиационный комитет, MAK) investigated the accident. The Bureau of Enquiry and Analysis for Civil Aviation Safety (BEA), representing the country where the aircraft was manufactured (France), and the Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB), representing the state of registration (Bermuda), assisted in the investigation. The MAK decoded and analyzed both flight recorders of the aircraft.