In 2024, six incidents occurred in Russia involving damage to aircraft during towing due to negligence of ground service personnel. These incidents occurred at airports in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Kazan, Irkutsk, and Magadan.
The reasons included violations such as lack of radio communication between team members, special vehicles left in the wrong place, an uncleared apron, non-compliance with technological procedures, and other errors.
For example, on February 11, 2024, at Sheremetyevo airfield, a ground service team damaged an A-320 aircraft with registration number RA-73733 of Aeroflot airline while towing it, colliding it with a self-propelled ladder that was left unattended. One of the team members noticed the ladder but did not consider it necessary to warn colleagues about the obstacle. He justified his actions by saying that this was not his area of control. As a result of the collision, the A-320 aircraft sustained damage to the wingtips and was taken out of service for some time.
Rosaviatsiya instructed the heads of territorial bodies to conduct training sessions to improve the skills of specialists servicing aircraft. The agency also recommends developing procedures for actions in emergency situations, such as a broken coupling device or icing.
Sheremetyevo reported on regular measures to prevent aircraft damage. Kazan Airport pointed out the importance of increasing the number of towing teams, improving staff training, and purchasing additional communication devices.
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