On 29 August 1996 at 10:22:23 CEST, a Tupolev Tu-154M operating this flight crashed into the ground in Operafjellet during the final approach to Svalbard Airport.

All 141 people (11 crew members and 130 passengers, of whom three were children) aboard the plane were killed, making it the deadliest aviation accident in Norway.

[2] The accident was the result of a series of small navigational errors causing the aircraft to be 3.7 kilometres (2.3 mi; 2.0 nmi) from the approach centerline at the time of impact.

[1]: 25  The weather at the accident area was dominated by a low pressure trough, causing rain showers and wind from 15 to 30 knots (28 to 56 km/h; 17 to 35 mph) at 240–270°.

Between 08:00 and 09:00, a weak trough passed, reducing visibility to 6 kilometres (4 mi; 3 nmi) and a cloud base at 400 to 450 metres (1,300 to 1,500 ft).

[1]: 18 At 07:55 UTC (09:55 local Central European Summer Time, CEST), the crew requested clearance to start their descent.

The turn was started late and resulted in aircraft flying northeast (left) of correct outbound track.

At 08:17:57 UTC, the navigator said "Ah, abeam eight miles 2801 inbound", to which AFIS replied two seconds later "Correct".

[1]: 10 At 08:20:17 UTC, the pilot in command ordered the aircraft turned to 291°, which, when adjusted for drift, resulted in a course close to 300°, nearly paralleling the localizer course.

The aircraft started turning left at 08:22:05 UTC, and immediately entered an area of turbulence created by the surrounding mountains.

[1]: 10 During initial approach, the radio altimeter warning had been activated several times, which indicated less than 750 metres (2,460 ft) from the aircraft to the terrain.

[2] The Joint Rescue Coordination Centre of Northern Norway received a message about the crash at 10:30 CEST (8:30 UTC) and the search-and-rescue service was immediately deployed.

Most of the aircraft was located on the mountain's plateau, although some debris had slid down a vertical cliff and was scattered along the valley and partially covered by an avalanche.

Because of the bad weather, which included fog and snow, transporting workers to the plateau was often impossible, so work started in the valley.

Later in the day, a Russian aircraft arrived with Deputy Minister Aleksandr Petrovich of the Ministry of Emergency Situations along with a team of 11 rescue workers, and representatives from the Interstate Aviation Committee, the Embassy of Ukraine in Moscow, the Federal Air Transport Agency, and Vnukovo Airlines.

In a meeting that evening, Olsen accepted Russian assistance, while international agreement confirmed that the investigation would be led by the Norwegian authorities.

On 31 August, Grete Faremo, the Norwegian minister of justice visited the Russian settlements as a representative from the government of Norway.

[3] All identification of people was performed in Tromsø, as a cooperation between Troms Police District, National Criminal Investigation Service, and the University Hospital of North Norway.

Thus, both HSIs were set incorrectly, which along with the course deviation indicator hinted that the plane was being blown to the left and needed to adjust course to the right.

[1]: 83 The AFIS air controller has a different role in Norway from in Russia, and the crew were not aware that they were being given information and advice, rather than orders.

The crew showed a lack of situational awareness following their uncertainty of the aircraft position in relation to LLZ 28, caused by indications on the HSIs.

The crew were not aware that they could check the aircraft location in relation to the centerline with a VDF (VHF direction finder).

Despite uncertainty and disagreement in the group, the approach was not abandoned, as the aircraft should have climbed to a safe altitude while the problem was solved.

[1]: 84 On 20 September, the surviving relatives of each decedent received 2 million Russian rubles (about US$40,000) for each person who died in the accident.

Ukrainian relatives stated to Norwegian media that they had not received information about the cause and other issues surrounding the accident.

[7] About a year after the accident, all relatives had been offered US$20,000, but about two-thirds of them chose not to accept the amount, and instead started a process to sue the insurance company.

Because of the Svalbard Treaty, the archipelago is an economic free zone and Arktikugol is exempt from paying social insurance, so its employees did not have a right to Norwegian benefits.

[10] In November, it was decided that the Ukrainians needed to make a guarantee for NOK 2.5 million to run the case, which they could not afford.

[13] In 1999, the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs established a scholarship to help children who lost a parent in the accident to take senior secondary and tertiary education.