The problem of aircraft overload in the commercial aircraft fleets of the former Soviet republics has come roaring to the fore once again following the crash of an Azerbaijan-based Ilyushin Il-76 freighter in China earlier this month. A four-engine Ilyushin Il-76 cargo jet crashed about 6 mi. from the airport in Urumqi, in the northwestern Chinese province of Sinkiang, on May 18 just 2 min. after takeoff, killing all seven crew on board. The airplane reportedly was owned by a private Azerbaijan company and leased by a Ukrainian operator. It was delivering consumer goods from Taiyuan, in Shanxi province, to Riga, Latvia, with stopovers for refueling scheduled in Urumqi and Baku, Azerbaijan.
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