Английская Википедия:1991 Azerbaijani Mil Mi-8 shootdown
Шаблон:Short description Шаблон:Infobox Aircraft accident On November 20, 1991, an Azerbaijani Mil Mi-8 military helicopter, carrying a peacekeeping mission team consisting of 13 Azerbaijani government officials, two Russian and one Kazakhstani Ministry of Internal Affairs officials, three Azerbaijani journalists and three helicopter crew was shot down amidst heavy fighting near the village of Berdashen, also known as Karakend, in Nagorno-Karabakh.[1][2] All 22 people (19 passengers and three crew) on board were killed in the crash.[3] The incident is known in Azerbaijan as the ''Karakend tragedy''.[4]
Background
In accordance with the Zheleznovodsk communique initiated by Boris Yeltsin and Nursultan Nazarbayev in the Russian city of Zheleznovodsk for the peaceful resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and their subsequent shuttle diplomacy visit to the region in September 1991, officials from Russia and Kazakhstan were placed in the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast (NKAO) for an observation mission.
On the eve of the crash, the Armenian side ceased the peace talks with Azerbaijan until Azerbaijan re-opened the natural gas supply to Armenia, which it had cut off on November 4.[5] The team of observers along with representatives of Azerbaijani government were to fly from Aghdam to Martuni due to rising tension in the district.[1]
Shootdown
The helicopter MI-8 with the observation team departed from Aghdam on 20 November 1991 with 22 people on board and was shot down en route with a group of ZSU-23-4 Shilka and SA-6 missiles, killing everyone on board.[6] The attack on the helicopter disrupted the ongoing peace talks.[7][8]
Various conspiracy theories about the incident have since been in circulation, and are promoted by various political figures in Azerbaijan, who claim that the shootdown was a political assassination. Despite an absence of official investigation evidence, such theories are considered credible by a significant part of the Azerbaijani population.
| Full name | Position | Country |
|---|---|---|
| Tofig Ismayilov | Secretary of State | Шаблон:Flag |
| Ismat Gayibov | Public Prosecutor General | Шаблон:Flag |
| Mahammad Asadov | Minister of Internal Affairs, State Advisor | Шаблон:Flag |
| Zulfi Hajiyev | Deputy Prime Minister | Шаблон:Flag |
| Osman Mirzayev | Head of Presidential Administration, journalist | Шаблон:Flag |
| Ali Mustafayev | Journalist of Azerbaijani State TV,[11] Azerbaijan | Шаблон:Flag |
| Vagif Jafarov | Member of Parliament | Шаблон:Flag |
| Шаблон:Ill | Member of Parliament | Шаблон:Flag |
| Igor Plavski | Public Prosecutor of Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast (NKAO) | Шаблон:Flag |
| Saylau Serikov | Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs | Шаблон:Flag |
| Fakhraddin Shahbazov | Cameraman, Azerbaijani State TV | Шаблон:Flag |
| Arif Huseynzadeh | Lights technician, Azerbaijani State TV | Шаблон:Flag |
| Rafig Mammadov | Aide to Secretary of State | Шаблон:Flag |
| Sergey Ivanov | Head of department of National Security Ministry, NKAO | Шаблон:Flag |
| Шаблон:Ill | Commandant for Emergency Situations of NKAO | Шаблон:Flag |
| Mikhail Lukashov | Motor Vehicle Division, Major General | Шаблон:Flag |
| Oleg Kocherev | Lieutenant Colonel of the MVD | Шаблон:Flag |
| Vladimir Kovalyov | Head of Ministry of Internal Affairs of NKAO | Шаблон:Flag |
| Шаблон:Ill | Deputy Prime Minister of Amelioration and Water Management | Шаблон:Flag |
| Vyacheslav Kotov | Commander of helicopter crew | Шаблон:Flag |
| Gennadiy Domov | Member of the helicopter crew | Шаблон:Flag |
| Dmitry Yarovenko | Member of the helicopter crew | Шаблон:Flag |
Investigation
Initial reports by central state agency TASS claimed the helicopter flew into fog and crashed into a hill. On November 21, the chairman of the crash investigation committee announced over TV that the helicopter was shot at by large caliber weapons and the weapons and video equipment were stolen from the site of the incident.[1] At 6:30 PM, the same day, the deputy Chief of Command of Internal Troops of the Ministry for Internal Affairs of USSR, Vyacheslav Ponomarev left for Aghdam. The Interior Ministry officials declared they would not withdraw the internal troop detachments from the district due to escalation of the conflict. The investigation committee was also to determine where the victims would be buried.[1] However, because the area of the crash was soon captured by Armenian militants, the investigation was suspended and no one was indicted.[12]
The investigation was initiated for clarifying the reasons for the crash. The first version was transferred by TASS referring to the commander's special area of NKAO: helicopter exploded, sprung upon a rock in the fog.[1] However, an investigation found holes in the fuselage consistent with the explosion of a rocket.[13] Investigation Commission Chairman Adil Agayev said that the helicopter was shot down from the ground by a large-caliber weapon, video equipment and weapons from the crash site were removed.[1] Armenians denied any involvement, although they were blamed immediately for the incident.[13] In response to Agayev the deputies of the USSR from Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh Zori Balayan, Victor Hambardzumyan, Henrik Igityan, Sos Sargsyan accused Central television of bias and hinted at the uninvolvement of Armenians in the crash.[1] According to American researcher Michael P. Croissant, it appeared to be an Armenian rocket attack.[6]
Aftermath
After the public burial of the Azerbaijani victims in Baku on November 22, demonstrations began. The protestors demanded the Supreme Soviet and the chairman of Communist Party of Azerbaijan, Ayaz Mutalibov, to establish authority in Karabakh or resign from office.
As a result, the Azerbaijani Supreme Soviet called a special session on November 26 requesting the imposition of martial law in the republic, withdrawing cadets and officers of Azerbaijani ethnicity from the Soviet Army and ceasing all negotiations with Armenia.[1]
On November 27, the Azerbaijani Supreme Soviet voted in favour of abolishing the autonomous status of NKAO and established direct rule over it. It also officially changed the name of Stepanakert to its pre-Soviet name, Khankendi, and re-arranged administrative division of the rayons in Nagorno-Karabakh area.[6][7]
See also
External links
References
Шаблон:Aviation incidents and accidents in 1991 Шаблон:Aviation accidents and incidents in Azerbaijan Шаблон:Nagorno-Karabakh Conflict Шаблон:Coord missing
- ↑ 1,0 1,1 1,2 1,3 1,4 1,5 1,6 1,7 Шаблон:Cite news
- ↑ Шаблон:Cite book
- ↑ 3,0 3,1 Шаблон:Cite web
- ↑ Шаблон:Cite web
- ↑ Шаблон:Cite book
- ↑ 6,0 6,1 6,2 Шаблон:Cite book
- ↑ 7,0 7,1 Шаблон:Cite news
- ↑ Шаблон:Cite web
- ↑ Шаблон:Cite web
- ↑ Шаблон:Cite web
- ↑ Шаблон:Cite web
- ↑ Шаблон:Cite news
- ↑ 13,0 13,1 Шаблон:Cite book
- Английская Википедия
- 1991 in Azerbaijan
- 1991 in the Soviet Union
- Accidents and incidents involving the Mil Mi-8
- 20th-century aircraft shootdown incidents
- Aviation accidents and incidents in 1991
- Aviation accidents and incidents in Azerbaijan
- Aviation accidents and incidents in the Soviet Union
- First Nagorno-Karabakh War
- November 1991 events in Asia
- Страницы, где используется шаблон "Навигационная таблица/Телепорт"
- Страницы с телепортом
- Википедия
- Статья из Википедии
- Статья из Английской Википедии
