Kyiv, August 27, 2023, The Europe Today: 03 Ukrainian military pilots, including a “mega talent”, were killed when two L-39 combat training aircraft collided over a region west of Kyiv, the air force has said.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who is relying on the swift training of crews to fly up to 61 F-16 fighter jets, said in his nightly video address on Saturday that the three men included Andriy Pilshchykov, nicknamed ‘Juice’, “a Ukrainian officer, one of those who greatly helped our state”.
He called the collision a “catastrophe in the sky”.
Air force spokesman Yuriy Ihnat described Mr Pilshchykov as a “mega talent” and leader of reforms.
“You can’t even imagine how much he wanted to fly an F-16,” Mr Ihnat wrote on his Facebook page. “But now that American planes are actually on the horizon, he will not fly them.”
Ukraine’s prosecutor general’s office announced a criminal investigation had been opened into whether flight preparation rules were violated following the crash on Friday.
“It is too early to discuss details. Certainly, all circumstances will be clarified,” Mr Zelenskyy said.
The air force announced the crash on its Telegram app. “We express our condolences to the families of the victims. This is a painful and irreparable loss for all of us,” it said.
