Smartavia Passenger Plane Sends Distress Signal Over Black Sea

A Smartavia passenger aircraft carrying 200 people disappeared from radar over the Black Sea, prompting pilots to declare a code 7700, indicating a serious emergency. The flight was rerouted back to Sochi due to a technical malfunction, according to Rosaviatsiya.

The aircraft landed safely at the airport, as confirmed by officials. Reports from Mash indicated that the technical issue involved a failure of one of the engines.

Due to sanctions and the aging fleet, incidents involving civil aviation in Russia have increased approximately fourfold compared to 2024, as detailed by Novaya Gazeta Europe. Following the onset of the full-scale war against Ukraine, Russian airlines have been prohibited from flying over the European Union and the United States, as well as acquiring spare parts from Western sources, particularly for aircraft like Boeing and Airbus.

To circumvent these restrictions, Russian airlines have resorted to importing parts from abroad and cannibalizing existing aircraft for repairs, according to industry experts. Although the industry has claimed to have overcome these challenges, incidents such as in-flight fuselage detachment have been reported, including an incident involving a Russia airline flight from Vladivostok to Blagoveshchensk, which made an emergency landing in Khabarovsk with 90 passengers on board.