1933 Tupolev ANT-7 Podolsk crash

1933 Tupolev ANT-7 Podolsk crash
	A Tupolev ANT-7
Accident
Date	5 September 1933
Summary	Wing failure, loss of control
Site	near Podolsk, Moscow Oblast, RSFSR, USSR
Aircraft
Aircraft type	Tupolev R-6L (converted from R-6)
Operator	Moscow Aviation Plant No. 22
Registration	USSR-S
Flight origin	Moscow
Destination	Crimea
Passengers	6
Crew	2
Fatalities	8
Survivors	0

The 1933 Tupolev ANT-7 Podolsk crash was an aviation accident that occurred south of Podolsk, Moscow Oblast, on Tuesday, 5 September 1933. The crash involved a converted Tupolev ANT-7 aircraft and resulted in the deaths of all eight people on board, including prominent figures in the Soviet aviation industry and civil aviation. The incident gained widespread attention and ultimately led to a comprehensive reorganization of air transport in the Soviet Union.

Aircraft

The ANT-7 involved in the incident was created in July 1933 at the Moscow Aviation Plant No. 22 by converting a reconnaissance aircraft, the R-6. These aircraft were considered outdated at the time and were gradually being decommissioned. Therefore, they were converted into more comfortable passenger ANT-7 aircraft, which is why the converted aircraft is sometimes referred to as the R-6L ("limousine") in some references. These modifications were supported by the head of the Main Directorate of Aviation Industry, Pyotr Ionovich Baranov.^{[citation needed]}

Only one copy was created, with all armament removed. The fuselage was modified to accommodate 8 passenger seats (according to other sources, the aircraft's seating capacity was 7), and the cockpit was glazed. Equipment for blind flight in night and poor weather conditions was not installed. The test flight of the airliner took place near the plant's airfield and showed good results.^[1]

Crash

In early September, an unexpected order arrived at the plant, requiring fuel tanks to be installed on the aircraft. The ANT-7 was to perform a long flight to Crimea and deliver a group of representatives from the aviation industry and civil aviation there, as a new aviation plant was being opened in Sevastopol.^{[citation needed]}

It is known (from the daughter of A. Z. Goltsman) that the order to fly to Crimea, delivered by a military courier, was personally received from Stalin. Whether the crash was orchestrated or not is unknown.

There were a total of 2 crew members and 6 passengers on board:^[1]

Crew

Dorfman I. M. — Chief Pilot of Glavaviaprom
Plotnikov N. E. — Flight mechanic

Passengers

Baranov P. I. — Deputy Commissar of Heavy Industry, Head of the Main Directorate of Aviation Industry
B. M. Baranova — his wife (who persuaded her husband to take her to Crimea, where their children were vacationing)
Goltsman A. Z. — Head of the Main Directorate of the Civil Air Fleet of the USSR
Petrov (Sergeyev) A. V. — Deputy Head of the Main Directorate of the Civil Air Fleet
Gorbunov S. P. — Director of the Aviation Plant No. 22
Zarzar V. A. — Member of the Presidium of the State Planning Committee of the USSR

The weather conditions were poor, but Baranov insisted on the departure. At 09:00, the ANT-7 took off from Moscow. 20 minutes later, near Podolsk, the low-flying airliner snagged the undercarriage on a wire of an amateur radio antenna, which was stretched on high poles. Losing speed, the aircraft then struck the top of a tall white willow with the aileron of its left wing, causing the left wing section to separate from the aircraft. The ANT-7 then lost control, crashed into the ground and was completely destroyed. All 8 people on board died.^[1]

On September 5th at 9:20 a.m., south of Podolsk, near the Lopasnya station, due to an airplane crash, the following people died: Deputy Commissar of Heavy Industry, Head of the Main Directorate of Aviation Industry Comrade Baranov Pyotr Ionovich, Head of the Main Directorate of the Civil Air Fleet Comrade Goltsman A. Z., Director of Plant No. 22 Comrade Gorbunov S. P., Deputy Head of the Main Directorate of the Civil Air Fleet Comrade Petrov A. V., Member of the Presidium of the State Planning Committee of the USSR Comrade Zarzar V. A., Chief Pilot Comrade Dorfman I. M., Flight Mechanic Plotnikov N. E., and Comrade B. M. Baranova. The government granted personal pensions to the families of the deceased.
— “Pravda”, September 6, 1933^[2]

Causes

The crash almost completely repeated the crash near Naro-Fominsk that occurred two years earlier — the aircraft, flying in foggy conditions and at a dangerously low altitude, collided with trees and then crashed into the ground. Various reasons were given as to why pilot Dorfman was flying at such a low altitude. Some believed that the pilot was not actually experienced enough and undeservedly held the position of chief pilot. Others believed that the aircraft was overloaded, which prevented it from gaining altitude.^[3] The investigation commission concluded that due to low cloud cover, and lacking equipment (instruments and radio equipment) for blind flights, the pilot was forced to fly the airliner at such a low altitude to avoid losing sight of the ground, which led to the collision with obstacles.^[1]

Aftermath

The crash effectively decapitated the Soviet aviation industry and civil aviation. Two years before the incident, high-ranking party officials were banned from flying on aircraft. Joseph Stalin was vacationing in Sochi when he learned of the incident, while Lazar Kaganovich was "in charge" in Moscow at the time and received the following telegram.

Flying by responsible non-pilot officials without permission from the Central Committee must be prohibited under threat of expulsion from the party. This prohibition must be strictly enforced, and violators should be expelled regardless of their rank
— Stalin I. V.^[3]

As a result, the Politburo created and approved by Stalin a list of posts, from members of the Central Committee to heads of main directorates of people's commissariats, who were forbidden to fly freely. For the first time in the country, an annual qualification check for pilots was introduced. The aviation industry was now required to equip every aircraft with all necessary equipment for instrument flights. Unauthorized modifications of aircraft and the transportation of passengers on untested airliners were also prohibited. But more significantly, the Soviet Union created navigation, meteorological, and navigation services, and all tall structures, including radio antennas, were now required to be marked with signal lights. Additionally, work on the creation of the Air Code was expedited. Twenty-three years later, in 1956, a special government aviation unit was established to transport party leaders.^[3]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Chertok, Boris Evseyevich (1999). Rockets and People. Fili — Podlipki — Tyuratam (2nd ed.). Moscow: Mashynostroyenie. p. 448. ISBN 5-217-02934-X.
^ Bodrikhin, Nikolay Georgiyevich (2011). Tupolev. Lives of Remarkable People. Moscow: Molodaya Gvardiya. p. 455. ISBN 978-5235034396.
^ ^a ^b ^c Zhirnov, Yevgeny (2008-09-08). "Absurd and Terrible Disaster". Kommersant. Archived from the original on 2015-11-04. Retrieved 2014-08-16.

[Chertok-1] Chertok, Boris Evseyevich (1999). Rockets and People. Fili — Podlipki — Tyuratam (2nd ed.). Moscow: Mashynostroyenie. p. 448. ISBN 5-217-02934-X.

[2] Bodrikhin, Nikolay Georgiyevich (2011). Tupolev. Lives of Remarkable People. Moscow: Molodaya Gvardiya. p. 455. ISBN 978-5235034396.

[Kommersant-3] Zhirnov, Yevgeny (2008-09-08). "Absurd and Terrible Disaster". Kommersant. Archived from the original on 2015-11-04. Retrieved 2014-08-16.

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