Fourteen years ago, one of the most terrible incidents in the history of modern Ukraine took place - the Sknilov tragedy. On July 27, 2002, an air show was held at the Sknilov airfield, which is located near Lviv, in honor of the 60th anniversary of the 14th Aviation Corps of the Ukrainian Air Force. Then a Su-27UB fighter crashed into the crowd of spectators and exploded. There is still debate about who is really to blame for the deaths of 77 people.
Fighter
"Su-27" was developed by the end of the 70s, and since the mid-80s it has been actively operated in the aviation units of the USSR Air Force. This aircraft has excellent maneuverability. Using the Su-27, test pilot Evgeny Pugachev in Le Bourget demonstrated a new aerobatics - Pugachev's cobra. It consists in the following: the plane lifts its nose up, without changing the direction of flight, fliestail forward for a while, and then returns to its original position. Of course, for the retraining of pilots, a combat training modification of the Su-27UB was developed. This aircraft is a two-seater, and the pilots in it sit one after another. It was the Su-27UB that took off at about noon from the Ozernoe airfield, which is located near Zhytomyr, and headed towards the Sknilov airfield, where it was supposed to become one of the elements of the air show program.
The crew commander was Colonel Vladimir Anatolyevich Toponar, and the co-pilot was Colonel Yuri Mikhailovich Egorov. Both had a solid flying time: Toponar had about 1900 hours, and Yegorov had 2000. In addition, the crew commander has been representing the Ukrainian Falcons aerobatic team since 1996, and no one has any doubts about the professionalism of the pilots.
Airshow
According to the organizers of the air show, in addition to the exhibition of aviation equipment, four aircraft were supposed to make demonstration flights that day. The first to perform were two sports-training Yak-52s, which, after a simulated battle, effectively flew over the podium where the guests of honor were. The then commander of the Ukrainian Air Force, Viktor Strelnikov, ordered that overflights be banned. But it was too late to change anything. The MiG-29 fighter was supposed to be the third, but its flight was canceled, and the Su-27UB of Toponar and Egorov was already flying up to the Sknilov airfield.
Sknilov tragedy
At about 12:41 Anatoly Tretyakov, Deputy Commander of the 14th Aviation Corps, gave the start command. The Su-27UB began its descent and passed over the stands. Then he began to perform the first aerobatics - "oblique loop". But the height turns out to be dangerous, as the pilots are informed by the signal of the on-board computer. According to the flight recorder, the crew could not determine where the spectators were after that.
Then Egorov decides to perform a "barrel roll", which will become fatal: the fighter has lost altitude. Yuri Yatsyuk, who was the deputy head of flights, orders to turn from the ground, but because of this, the plane also loses speed. Next comes the "fast and the furious" command, but this does not help either: the fighter sags and falls down. Having hooked a tree with its wing, "S-27UB" crushes the cockpit of a tanker, cuts planes standing at the airfield with its wings. At this moment, Toponar and Yegorov ejected. A completely uncontrollable fighter crashes into a crowd of spectators and explodes, starting a terrible fire. The hands of the clock showed 12:52.
Consequences
Firemen and ambulances immediately left for the crash site. But the Sknilov tragedy took many lives. The list of the dead includes 77 people, including 28 children. 543 people were recognized as victims. Shortly after the crash, a commission from the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine launched an investigation, which determined thatthe main reason is the deviation of the crew from the intended flight mission and errors in piloting the aircraft.
President Leonid Kuchma dismissed Air Force Commander Colonel-General Viktor Strelnikov, who was later arrested by the Prosecutor General's Office. The trial of the surviving pilots and their leaders dragged on until 2005. According to the verdict, Toponar had to spend the next 14 years of his life in prison and pay a fine of 7.2 million hryvnia, which was later reduced to 150,000. Egorov was also sentenced to 8 years in prison and a fine of 2.5 million hryvnia. Both are currently at large. Tretyakov and Yatsyuk were given 6 years in prison and a fine of 700,000 hryvnia.
Anatoly Lukinykh, who headed the flight safety service, was sentenced to 4 years of probation. The only defendant who was acquitted was Oleg Dzyubetsky, who was in charge of training the crew. None of them admitted their guilt. Four former generals were also put on trial, including Viktor Strelnikov, but in 2008 they were acquitted. The Sknilov tragedy of 2002 also caused the disbandment of the Ukrainian Falcons, of which Toponar was a member. At the moment, demonstration air shows are not held in Ukraine at all. The Sknilov tragedy showed how spectacular aircraft performances can turn out due to the negligence of people.
Memory
The victims and relatives of the victims were paid a one-timecompensation in the amount of about 55 thousand hryvnia. But after that, people simply forgot about it. According to Stefan Kozak, head of the public organization "Sknilovskaya Tragedy", the victims are not provided with any social care or rehabilitation. According to him, some officials answered that, they say, people themselves are to blame for going to the air show. They are remembered only when the next anniversary of the tragedy comes. A small chapel was erected at the airfield with donations from all over the world and funds from the organization "Sknilovskaya Tragedy". Photos of the dead are in it on a poster with the name "77 angels". Their relatives and friends often come here. The Sknilov tragedy did not go unnoticed in the media space either. The documentary film "Forgiveness" by the STB channel tells just about her.
Instead of an epilogue
As mentioned above, none of the high-ranking officials of the Ministry of Defense was punished. The Sknilov tragedy of 2002 only sent some of them to the reserve. The court left the claims of relatives of the dead and injured without consideration.
