S7 Airlines Flight 778

S7 Airlines Flight 778

The accident aircraft while operating as Aeroflot, pictured at Charles de Gaulle Airport on 2003.
Accident summary
Date	9 July 2006
Summary	Landing accident, pilot error
Site	Irkutsk International Airport, Irkutsk Oblast, Russia
Passengers	195
Crew	8
Fatalities	125
Injuries (non-fatal)	63
Survivors	78
Aircraft type	Airbus A310-324
Operator	S7 Airlines
Registration	F-OGYP
Flight origin	Domodedovo International Airport, Moscow, Russia
Destination	Irkutsk International Airport, Irkutsk, Russia

S7 Airlines Flight 778 (RU778/SBI778) was an Airbus A310-300 on a scheduled domestic passenger flight, serving the route from Moscow Domodedovo to Irkutsk, when it crashed upon landing at Irkutsk International Airport at 07:44 local time on 9 July 2006 (8 July, 22:44 UTC). The plane overshot the runway, sliding over several hundred metres of wet runway and grass. It crashed through a concrete barricade, hit a group of private garages and burst into flames. Television pictures showed smoking ruins of the Airbus with only the tail section intact. It took two hours for local firefighters from five different fire stations to extinguish the blaze.

A total of 125 people were killed in the accident. It was the deadliest plane crash in Irkutsk since Vladivostok Air Flight 352 in 2001. It was also the company's deadliest plane crash. Currently, it is held as the fourth deadliest plane crash in Russia and the third deadliest involving an Airbus A310, after Kenya Airways Flight 431 and Yemenia Flight 626.

In the wake of the crash, most media outlets reported that a brake failure occurred in Flight 778. However, the final report of the Russian Interstate Aviation Committee (MAK), concluded that the cause of the crash was due to pilot error.

Flight 778 departed Moscow Domodedovo International Airport at 17:17. The flight was uneventful until it started its descent to Irkutsk at 22:17. At the time, the weather at Irkutsk was being affected the edge of a cyclone near Ulaanbaatar, resulting in a cold front sweeping over the area. Observers stated that the weather in Irkutsk was light precipitation with cumulonimbus clouds over the airport. Wind speed at ground level at the airport was roughly 5 m/s (11.1 MPH). If landing in Irkutsk wasn't possible, the flight would have to be diverted to Bratsk Airport. The plane contacted air traffic control and lined up perfectly with the runway.