The 1984 Balkan Bulgarian Tupolev Tu-134 crash occurred on 10 January 1984 when a

Balkan Bulgarian Airlines Balkan Bulgarian Airlines ( bg, Балкан) was Bulgaria's government-owned flag carrier airline between 1947 and 2002. During the 1970s, the airline became a significant European carrier. The company encountered financial instability follow ...

Tupolev Tu-134 The Tupolev Tu-134 (NATO reporting name: Crusty) is a twin-engined, narrow-body jet airliner built in the Soviet Union for short and medium-haul routes from 1966 to 1989. The original version featured a glazed-nose design and, like certain ot ...

airliner crashed on an international flight from

Berlin Schönefeld Airport Berlin Schönefeld Airport () (formerly ) was the secondary international airport of Berlin, the capital of Germany. It was located southeast of Berlin near the town of Schönefeld in the state of Brandenburg and bordered Berlin's southern bou ...

Schönefeld Schönefeld (meaning ''beautiful field'') is a suburban municipality in the Dahme-Spreewald district, Brandenburg, Germany. It borders the southeastern districts of Berlin. The municipal area encompasses the old Berlin Schönefeld Airport (SXF) a ...

East Germany East Germany, officially the German Democratic Republic (GDR; german: Deutsche Demokratische Republik, , DDR, ), was a country that existed from its creation on 7 October 1949 until its dissolution on 3 October 1990. In these years the state ...

, to

Sofia Airport Sofia Airport ( bg, Летище София, translit=Letishte Sofiya) is the main international airport of Bulgaria, located east of the centre of the capital Sofia. In 2019 the airport surpassed 7 million passengers for the first time. The ai ...

Sofia Sofia ( ; bg, София, Sofiya, ) is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain in the western parts of the country. The city is built west of the Iskar river, and h ...

, Bulgaria. All fifty on board were killed. While on approach to Sofia Airport in heavy snow, the crew failed to make visual contact with the ground as they descended below decision altitude. The crew attempted to overshoot for an altitude of , but the aircraft hit a power line and crashed from the runway into a forest. The aircraft was destroyed with no survivors.

Passengers

Thirty-eight passengers and the crew were Bulgarians, the other seven on the flight were East Germans.

References

* UK CAA Document CAA 429 World Airline Accident Summary (ICAO Summary 1984-5) Aviation accidents and incidents in 1984 Airliner accidents and incidents caused by weather Airliner accidents and incidents caused by pilot error Accidents and incidents involving the Tupolev Tu-134 Aviation accidents and incidents in Bulgaria Balkan Bulgarian Airlines accidents and incidents 1984 in Bulgaria January 1984 events in Europe 1984 disasters in Bulgaria {{aviation-accident-stub