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ČSA Flight 540 was a regularly scheduled international flight from Prague, Czechoslovakia to Tehran, Iran via Damascus, Syria and Baghdad, Iraq. On 20 August 1975, the flight, operated by an Ilyushin Il-62, crashed 17 km (11 mi) from Damascus International Airport while descending at night in clear weather, breaking up and catching fire on impact.[1] 126 of the 128 passengers and crew died in the accident, making it Syria's worst air disaster and the worst air disaster for the airline.[2] Following the crash, the Czechoslovak government sent their condolences to the victims and Damascus.[3]
 OK-DBF, the aircraft involved in the accident, photographed in 1974 with a previous livery | |
| Accident | |
|---|---|
| Date | 20 August 1975 |
| Summary | Undetermined |
| Site |
|
| Aircraft | |
| Aircraft type | Ilyushin Il-62 |
| Aircraft name | Brno Trade Fair |
| Operator | ČSA (Československé Státní Aerolinie) |
| IATA flight No. | OK540 |
| ICAO flight No. | CSA540 |
| Call sign | CSA-LINES 540 |
| Registration | OK-DBF |
| Flight origin | Prague-Ruzyně International Airport, Czechoslovakia |
| 1st stopover | Damascus International Airport, Syria |
| 2nd stopover | Baghdad International Airport, Iraq |
| Destination | Mehrabad International Airport, Iran |
| Occupants | 128 |
| Passengers | 117 |
| Crew | 11 |
| Fatalities | 126 |
| Injuries | 2 |
| Survivors | 2 |
Aircraft and crew
editThe aircraft involved was an Ilyushin Il-62 with registration OK-DBF. It was produced in 1973 and delivered to the airline in the same year. The aircraft was named Brno Trade Fair.[1]
At the time of the accident, the flight captain was Ján Gajdoš (54) with 19,000 flight hours (circa 3000 on Il-62), who led the crew consisting of co-pilot Stanislav Žižka (50) with 15,000 flight hours (circa 2500 on Il-62), navigator František Aulík (43), and flight engineers Karel Hasman (48) and Vladimír Hejduk, who was just off duty. Purser Miroslav Peták was joined by a team of five cabin crew. In total, there were 117 passengers and 11 crew on board.[4]
Accident
editThe plane crashed in an area of high desert approximately 17 km from Damascus Airport.[a]
Initially there were 3 survivors, but one of them, a boy died on the way to the hospital. That brought the death toll to 126 with 2 survivors.[2]
| Nationality | Passengers | Crew | Survivors | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Czechoslovakia | 52 | 11 | 0 | 63 |
 Syria | 25 | 0 | 1 | 25 |
 Poland | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
 Spain | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
 Hungary | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
 East Germany | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
 Unknown | 34 | 0 | 1 | 34 |
| Total | 117 | 11 | 2 | 128 |
References
edit- 1 2 3 Ranter, Harro. "ASN Aircraft accident Ilyushin 62 OK-DBF Damascus International Airport (DAM)". Aviation Safety Network. Flight Safety Foundation. Retrieved 30 January 2017.
- 1 2 "Czech plane crash in desert, 126 dead". Eugene Register-Guard. 20 August 1975. Retrieved 30 January 2017 – via Google News.
- ↑ "Havárie čs. letadla u Damašku". Rudé právo (in Czech). Prague. 21 August 1975. p. 1. Retrieved 6 June 2025.
- ↑ "Utajená tragédie letu ČSA fotky" [The secret tragedy of the ČSA flight photos]. tiscali.cz (in Czech). Retrieved 4 April 2024.
