The topic of “Aravot” online on the air is discussed between the former chief of Armenia’s civil aviation, Shahen Petrosyan, and the former head of air flights, Suren Chakhmachyan.
Aram Abrahamyan – I would like to verify with you the versions of Malaysian plane crash. One of them is as follows: the plane was not crashed by anyone, it fell down just due to defects or other reasons.
Shahen Petrosyan – Such cases, of course, happen. The air disasters generally happen either due to the pilot’s mistake, or malfunction, or due to poor quality of fuel. Or, let assume, due to the mistakes by the ground controllers, let’s say, like it happened with the plane crashed in Smolensk, or perhaps, our Armavia plane that fell down in Sochi. Such disasters happen a lot, but this case is a bit different.
A. A. – What is the proof that this is not the case?
Sh. P. – Our historical experience, the Korean plane in 1983, the crash of “Siberia” aircraft during the Ukrainian military training exercises in 2011 and the crash of our Il-18 in Voronezh sky in 1976, they also crashed by the rocket strike. Terrorist incidents, up to the terrorist attack on Sep. 11. With regard to this Malaysian plane, there are many people with many evidences that it was hit by an earth-sky type of missile.
A. A. – What arguments can you bring in benefit that it was not the dispatcher’s mistake, nor the pilot’s mistake, nor malfunction, but a hit that the got the plane?
Suren Chakhmakhchyan – Any such case should be viewed in a complex form, i.e., one case becomes another’s reason. We must begin with the fact that the flight when preparing for it, has a “Fleet Plan”, where it states point-to-point where and at what time the plane is going to be. I am amazed at how people have not seen that the flight route crosses the places where military events are taking place. There is an international air route there. Why have they not caught the pilot’s hand? Why have they not said that you should not? It’s the fault of the Ukrainian aviation authorities. There are International Civil Aviation Organization airport code, which prohibits making a flight by such routes. Like, for example, by Karabakh airspace.
A. A. – If it was not a hit, there were also 2 more versions: it is a rocket, and it is a fighter, which took the flight and hit the plane. Why is it not a fighter, in your opinion?
Sh. P. – I an in favor of examining this disaster up to the end, when it is examined, and the investigation is over, we would at least learn the preliminary results, and the black boxes would be opened and decoded, then we will know the truth. But it should really be done by disinterested parties, whose plane it is, whose victims and so on, ICAO is an international organization, both ICAO, the European control, and the states that are interested in disclosure of all of this should be involved. But not Russia.
A. A. – Why do you think that it was a hit by a missile?
Sh. P. – In other words, the data, which I am getting from the Internet, or the information that I know, I am convinced in it, but my belief does not mean anything.
A. A. – I have read, maybe it’s amateur, if it was a hit from close distance, it is a gun fighter, then the plane would be crashed much stronger, and there would not be so big pieces as they are now.
Sh. P. – I cannot say for sure.
Prepared by ARAM ABRAHAMYAN
“Face to Face” talk show series are released by the Open Society Foundations- Armenia. The views and analyzes found in this broadcast express the opinions of the participants, and are not approved by the Open Society Foundations-Armenia, or its Board. This broadcast is made available thanks to comprehensive financial support by the Open Society Foundations-Armenia, under the mass media support program, grant No 18624.
