Pulkovo Aviation Enterprises Ilyushin IL-86 plane crash

The aircraft crashed shortly after takeoff from Moscow's Sheremetyevo Airport while on a repositioning flight to St. Petersburg.

Witnesses reported seeing the aircraft enter a steep climb immediately after takeoff, bank left, and crash into a forest near the end of the runway. Examination of the aircraft's Digital Flight Data Recorder indicates that, two seconds after lift-off, the plane's horizontal stabilizer spontaneously shifted to a full nose-up position. The Captain immediately pushed the control yoke fully forward in an attempt to lower the aircraft's nose, but was unsuccessful in doing so. Two flight attendants aboard survived, 14 other people aboard died.