November 17 Accident Resulted In 50 Fatalities

The pilot of a Russian airliner that went down near Kazan last month may have held an invalid pilot certificate, Russian authorities say. The accident resulted in the fatal injury of all 44 passengers and six crew on board the airplane.

As part of the investigation into the accident, authorities have discovered that it is possible that many pilots flying for small Russian carriers such as Tatarstan Airlines may have "received fake commercial licenses" and not completed adequate training, according to a report in the U.K. newspaper The Globe and Mail. 

Investigators say the pilot of the Boeing 737 involved in the accident may have gotten his certificate from a training center that was accredited through Rosaviation, Russian's airline regulator. They said there are questions about the "legality of the activity of the said aviation training center, which was liquidated."

The head of Tatarstan Airlines was fired following the accident, and Rosaviation recommended grounding the airline Wednesday until it can determine if its crews are properly trained.

The committee conducting the investigation is also interviewing managers at Rosaviation.

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