According to the mother of the deceased pilot, shortly before the crash, she spoke on the phone with her son, who admitted to her mother that the plane was not in good technical condition and that there had been cases when one of the engines had temporarily stopped working.
–
“He knew it and didn’t complain, just explained that the plane wasn’t in perfect condition,” she explained.
–
The mother of the deceased pilot said that her son had wanted to become a pilot since childhood and graduated from the Air Force University with excellent marks. “He wanted to serve in Ukraine. He tried to be the best in his field and his immediate superior could confirm that,” said the mother of the deceased pilot.
–
Ukrainian President Vladmir Zelensky declared mourning in the country on Saturday in memory of those killed in the disaster.
–
It has already been reported that an AN-26 plane crashed in the city of Chuhuiv, Kharkiv region, on Friday night, about to land at the city’s airport. At the scene of the disaster, two survivors were found and rescued who had jumped off the plane before it crashed to the ground. However, one of them later died in hospital.
–
It is estimated that there were a total of 27 people on board – seven crew members and 20 students of the Kharkiv National Air Force University.
–
The news of the accident during the training flight was also confirmed by the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The cause has not yet been determined, but the governor of the Kharkiv region, Alexei Kucher, said that one of the aircraft’s engines had failed.
–
The site of the disaster is about 40 kilometers from the Russian border in eastern Ukraine, but outside the war zone there.
–
The European Union’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Joseph Borrell, who visited Ukraine for the first time this week, expressed his condolences on Twitter to the families of the disaster victims and to the President of Ukraine.
— .
