August 29. 1996, a Tupolev 154 M crashed 10 kilometers east of Longyearbyen Airport in the worst airline disaster to take place on Norwegian soil.
News of Norway, issue 7, 1996
The tragedy struck the Russian mining communities at Barentsburg and Pyramiden on Svalbard. There were no survivors among the 141 persons aboard the plane (129 Passenger, 12 Crew). The passengers , all miners exept for 4 children, were from Russia and Ukraine. The aircraft was far off course from the normal approach to the airport, and struck the edge of the Bassen Plateau on Operafjell (mountain) . Heavy fog, high winds and snow on the plateau made the operations to bring down bodies very difficult. 40 Norwegians and 15 Russians took part in the recovery operation. In a letter to the Arktikugol mining community , Prime Minister Gro Harlem Brundtland expressed deep symphaty for the bereaved families. She also wrote that she could well understand their impatience, and she assured them that everything was been done to identify the victims and send them home.
- ODIN , Official Documentation and Information from Norway