Pilot error to blame for tragedy

4th June 2010

A transcript of recordings retrieved from the black box of President Kaczynski’s aircraft revealed that the crew ignored repeated warnings to pull up from the plane’s emergency systems.

As the Tupolev Tu-154 of the presidential flight flew in low as it approached Smolensk airport on the morning of April 10, its terrain awareness and warning systems told the pilots to “pull up, pull up”. Just a few seconds later the one of the crew members swears as he realises that the aircraft was going down.

His expletive is cut short as the flight rolls over and crashes roof first into trees, killing all 96 on board.

A few seconds earlier the automated voice of the system had issued a “ ...