2017 Turkish Airlines cargo plane crash — 2017 Cargo airliner crash in Kyrgyzstan
The crash killed 39 people and remains Kyrgyzstan's deadliest aviation accident since 2008, attributed to a false instrument landing signal and pilot error.
Key Facts
- Date
- 16 January 2017
- Aircraft type
- Boeing 747-400
- Total fatalities
- 39 people
- Crew killed
- 4 crew members
- Ground residents killed
- 35 people
- Route
- Hong Kong to Istanbul via Bishkek
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
Flying in thick fog, the Boeing 747-400 crew failed to acquire the correct instrument landing system signal. A series of pilot errors resulted in the aircraft flying significantly higher than the correct approach altitude, after which the autopilot locked onto a false glide slope signal, initiating an erroneous descent.
On 16 January 2017, Turkish Airlines Flight 6491, operated by ACT Airlines for Turkish Cargo, crashed into a residential area near Manas International Airport in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, seconds after a go-around was initiated. The aircraft came down past the runway threshold, striking homes in the densely populated neighborhood.
All four crew members and 35 residents on the ground were killed, totaling 39 fatalities. The disaster became Kyrgyzstan's deadliest aviation accident since the 2008 Iran Aseman Airlines crash, and the subsequent investigation highlighted the critical dangers of false glide slope capture and inadequate crew response during instrument approaches.