July 27 marks the 20th anniversary of the Sknyliv air show disaster near Lviv, Ukraine, that killed 77 people, including 28 children. It is the deadliest air show accident in history.
Remembering Sknyliv: The Deadliest Air Show Disaster In History
- By RFE/RL
1
The moment the Ukrainian Air Force Sukhoi Su-27 -- which had been piloted by Volodymyr Toponar and co-piloted by Yuriy Yegorov -- crashed into spectators while performing an aerobatic stunt for an estimated 10,000 onlookers at the Sknyliv airfield near Lviv, Ukraine, on July 27, 2002.
2
The aircraft skidded over the ground toward a stationary aircraft, striking a glancing blow against the nose of an Ilyushin Il-76 transport aircraft before exploding and cartwheeling into the crowd of spectators.
3
The pilots, Yuriy Yegorov (left) and Volodymyr Toponar, are seen moments after they ejected from their plane. They sustained only minor injuries.
4
Rescue workers clear bodies and debris in front of the Ilyushin Il-76 transport aircraft that was struck by the left wing of the Su-27. The pilots stated that the flight map they had received differed from the actual layout of the airfield.
5
Rescue workers remove the bodies of those killed.
6
Then-Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma visited crash victims on the day of the accident. Kuchma publicly blamed the military for the disaster and dismissed the head of the Ukrainian Air Force.
7
Voldya, 7, who was hurt in the air show disaster, cries as surgeon Ivan Fedorko treats his leg at a children's hospital in Lviv on July 28, 2002.
8
A mother sobs as she waits to identify the bodies of her two children who died during the air show tragedy a day earlier. The process of identifying the bodies was especially difficult due to the horrific damage inflicted.
9
Hundreds of Ukrainians gathered near the charred grass and tarmac to pray and lay flowers several days later on July 29, 2002.
10
On June 24, 2005, a military court sentenced pilot Volodymyr Toponar (seen in background) and co-pilot Yuriy Yegorov to 14 and five years in prison, respectively.
"The main cause of the plane crash was a failure to respect the flight plan and aerial maneuvers that were not on the program," inquiry chief Yevhen Marchuk said at the time.
"The main cause of the plane crash was a failure to respect the flight plan and aerial maneuvers that were not on the program," inquiry chief Yevhen Marchuk said at the time.
11
Co-pilot Yuriy Yegorov (pictured after his sentencing in 2005) was released in 2008 after then-President Viktor Yushchenko issued a decree reducing his sentence to 3 1/2 years.
A former military adviser to former President Leonid Kuchma blamed inadequate safety measures for the high loss of life at the air show.
"The main problem was the lack of adequate safety precautions on the ground that could have helped the pilots maneuver away from crowds in an emergency," Vadim Hrechaninov was quoted as saying by the Interfax-Ukraine news agency at the time.
A former military adviser to former President Leonid Kuchma blamed inadequate safety measures for the high loss of life at the air show.
"The main problem was the lack of adequate safety precautions on the ground that could have helped the pilots maneuver away from crowds in an emergency," Vadim Hrechaninov was quoted as saying by the Interfax-Ukraine news agency at the time.
