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As they examine last month's Kazan airport crash, investigators in Russia have launched a wider study into fake pilot licenses.
It's possible, they say, that not every Russian airline pilot possesses legal documentation. Specifically, they believe that the Kazan International Airport crash - in which 50 people were killed - involved such a pilot.
What's more, according to Vladimir Markin - representing the Investigative Committee - these fake licenses could have been issued at Russian aviation agency-approved sites.
IATA's (the International Air Transport Association) and other group's statistics show that there's one air accident death among every 4.7 million passengers flown worldwide. In Russia, that share grows to one passenger per every 1.2 million flown.
Initial crash factor studies focused on two issues: local weather conditions - these apparently poor - and fuel quality, with the possibility of low-grade product having been used. Markin stresses that there is now evidence to suggest the Boeing 737's pilot was given his fake license at a now-defunct pilot training facility. To date, no criminal charges have been pressed in relation to the Kazan International Airport crash.
"Investigators continue to look at the circumstances in which the crew of the crashed jetliner were trained," Markin said in a statement on the latest incident. "The investigators have doubts about the legality of the activity of the said aviation training centre, which was liquidated."
It's possible, they say, that not every Russian airline pilot possesses legal documentation. Specifically, they believe that the Kazan International Airport crash - in which 50 people were killed - involved such a pilot.
What's more, according to Vladimir Markin - representing the Investigative Committee - these fake licenses could have been issued at Russian aviation agency-approved sites.
IATA's (the International Air Transport Association) and other group's statistics show that there's one air accident death among every 4.7 million passengers flown worldwide. In Russia, that share grows to one passenger per every 1.2 million flown.
Kazan Airport Crash
The Kazan airport crash occurred on 17 November and involved Flight 363 - a Tatarstan Airlines Boeing 737 twin-engined airliner. The 50 fatalities total included 44 passengers, all of whom had earlier boarded the aircraft in Moscow.Initial crash factor studies focused on two issues: local weather conditions - these apparently poor - and fuel quality, with the possibility of low-grade product having been used. Markin stresses that there is now evidence to suggest the Boeing 737's pilot was given his fake license at a now-defunct pilot training facility. To date, no criminal charges have been pressed in relation to the Kazan International Airport crash.
Fake Russian Pilot Licenses
The fake Russian pilot license issue previously emerged in September 2012, when investigators were looking into the 2011 Lokomotiv Yaroslavl air disaster. This involved a Yak-42 airliner, on board which was the Lokomotiv Yaroslavl ice hockey team. All but one of the 45 people being flown lost their lives and, one year on, Markin asserted that neither the pilot not co-pilot "had...undergone the necessary training to fly this type of aircraft." Operator Yak-Service's deputy head, Vadim Timofeyev, was later charged with having breached air safety legislation."Investigators continue to look at the circumstances in which the crew of the crashed jetliner were trained," Markin said in a statement on the latest incident. "The investigators have doubts about the legality of the activity of the said aviation training centre, which was liquidated."
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