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Deadliest Air Show Disaster In History
Worse than the Ramstein blood bath
Air shows are a common way for the public to get a glimpse of advanced military machines and breathtaking aerial acrobatics. Millions of people have had the chance to experience an air show for themselves, including me. Between the airborne stunts and tours of recognizable aircraft, few people consider air shows to be dangerous. But they can be.
Air shows are no stranger to deadly accidents. The best-known of such disasters was the Ramstein air show collision, which killed 70 people in 1988. This incident was so visceral in Germany that the hard rock band Rammstein took their name from the disaster. But twenty years later, another similar disaster struck Europe, which surpassed the bloodshed at Ramstein air base.
On July 27th, 2002, over 10,000 spectators gathered at Sknyliv Airfield in Lviv, Ukraine. The spectators were expecting to see an aerial show put on by a Sukhoi Su-27UB.
The plane in question was piloted by two experienced fliers from the Ukrainian Air Force. The pilots were a part of the stunt group, Ukrainian Falcons. The show began around noon, local time. However…
