FATAL FLIGHT

Russian Pilot Gets Six Years in Prison for Emergency Landing That Killed 41

The back half of the plane caught fire during the landing, killing more than half of its passengers.

A Russian pilot who botched an emergency landing in 2019—killing most of his passengers as a result—will now spend six years in prison. The pilot, Denis Evdokimov, had to land at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo airport after lightning hit his plane. Russian prosecutors allege Evdokimov was reckless and brought the Sukhoi Superjet down roughly, “without observing the procedure,” causing the plane’s landing gear to collapse and its fuel to catch fire as it bounced down the runway, Al Arabiya News reported. The resulting inferno consumed the back half of the Aeroflot plane, killing 41 of the 78 people on board. Authorities charged Evdokimov with violating safety rules resulting in the negligent deaths of his passengers. He still has a chance to appeal the ruling, which also bars him from flying for three years.