Investigation Summary
The flight was a multi-leg journey from Oslo to Budapest with scheduled stops in Copenhagen and East Berlin. As the Ilyushin Il-18 approached Copenhagen, it encountered a severe thunderstorm with poor visibility and shifting winds. At 19:42, ground control cleared the flight to descend from 3,300 meters. The crew reduced engine power and extended the landing gear at 500 meters altitude. Shortly after, the aircraft experienced a sudden loss of longitudinal stability. The investigation noted that the aircraft lacked both a Flight Data Recorder (FDR) and a Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR), despite ICAO requirements for aircraft of its weight class. This absence of data made it difficult to determine why the experienced crew, led by WWII ace Dezső Szentgyörgyi, did not increase engine power to arrest the descent. Years later, the crash was re-evaluated in the context of microburst research, suggesting the aircraft was caught in a high-energy downdraft that exceeded its performance capabilities at low power settings.
Final Conclusions
The official investigation concluded that the aircraft suffered a loss of control while attempting to intercept the ILS glideslope for runway 22L. The loss of control was attributed to a deterioration of airflow over the tailplane, leading to a loss of longitudinal stability. While the specific trigger was not definitively proven in 1971, the meteorological conditions and flight path are consistent with a microburst encounter.
Photographic Evidence (1)
Video Analysis
No video analysis linked for this case file yet.
Airframe & Maintenance
Crew Experience
Captain
Dezsö Szentgyörgyi
First Officer
Jozsef Menyhart
Systems & Failure Modes
Ivchenko AI-20K Engines
The aircraft was powered by four turboprop engines; investigators noted that power was reduced during the descent and not increased before impact.
Tailplane / Horizontal Stabilizer
The final report suggested a deterioration of airflow over the tailplane caused the loss of longitudinal stability.
Flight Recorders
The absence of FDR and CVR equipment was a violation of ICAO requirements for an aircraft of this weight class.
Interesting Facts
- 01The captain, Dezső Szentgyörgyi, was the highest-scoring Hungarian fighter ace of World War II.
- 02The aircraft was not equipped with a flight data recorder or a cockpit voice recorder, a violation of ICAO requirements at the time.
- 03Medical examinations indicated that only four passengers and two crew members died from injuries sustained in the collision; the remaining 26 victims died from drowning.
- 04Three passengers were initially rescued from the wreckage, but one died in the hospital three days later.
- 05The wreckage was recovered from the sea and transported to Copenhagen for investigation.
- 06The aircraft was 10 years old at the time of the accident, having been built in 1961.
Safety Actions & Advisories
Microburst Detection
The aviation industry later implemented specialized weather radar monitors at airports to detect and alert crews to microburst activity.
Location
ACCIDENT SITE · Coordinates taken from the entered by an editor.