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Smolensk air disaster

Smolensk air disaster
Polish Air Force Flight 101
Wreckage from the Tu-154 at the crash site
Accident
Date10 April 2010 (2010-04-10)
SummaryControlled flight into terrain
Sitenear Smolensk North Airport
Smolensk, Russia
54°49′26″N 32°03′05″E / 54.82389°N 32.05139°E / 54.82389; 32.05139
Aircraft
Aircraft typeTupolev Tu-154M
Operator36 SPLT, Polish Air Force
ICAO flight No.PLF101
Call signPOLISH AIRFORCE 101
Registration101[1]
Flight originFrédéric Chopin Airport
Warsaw, Poland
DestinationSmolensk North Airport
Smolensk, Russia
Occupants96
Passengers89
Crew7
Fatalities96
Survivors0

On 10 April 2010, a Tupolev Tu-154 aircraft operating Polish Air Force Flight 101 crashed near the Russian city of Smolensk, killing all 96 people on board. Among the victims were the president of Poland, Lech Kaczyński, and his wife, Maria; the former president of Poland in exile, Ryszard Kaczorowski; the chief of the Polish General Staff and other senior Polish military officers; the president of the National Bank of Poland; Polish government officials; 18 members of the Polish parliament; senior members of the Polish clergy; and relatives of victims of the Katyn massacre. The group was arriving from Warsaw to attend an event commemorating the 70th anniversary of the massacre, which took place not far from Smolensk.

The pilots were attempting to land at Smolensk North Airport — a former military airbase — in thick fog, with visibility reduced to about 500 metres (1,600 ft). The aircraft descended far below the normal approach path until it struck trees, rolled, inverted and crashed into the ground, coming to rest in a wooded area a short distance from the runway.[2]

Both the Russian and Polish official investigations found no technical faults with the aircraft, and concluded that the crew failed to conduct the approach in a safe manner in the given weather conditions. The Polish authorities found serious deficiencies in the organization and training of the Air Force unit involved, which was subsequently disbanded. Several high-ranking members of the Polish military resigned following pressure from politicians and the media.

Various conspiracy theories have been circulated alleging that the plane had been deliberately brought down by the Russians in an act of political assassination, and that the 2011 investigations constituted a cover-up and that the Polish government of the time — primarily controlled by the Civic Platform party as opposed to Lech Kaczyński's Law and Justice party — was complicit in or aware of the plot, or at least aided in the efforts to cover it up.[3] These conspiracy theories are regularly promoted by Law and Justice, particularly by party leader Jarosław Kaczyński (twin brother of Lech Kaczyński) and deputy party leader Antoni Macierewicz.[4][5][6][7] Following Law and Justice's return to government, a new investigation was opened into the disaster, chaired by Macierewicz; its 2022 conclusion alleged a Russian plot.[8][9] The new report did not produce any evidence that could conclusively challenge the 2011 reports,[3] was later indicated to have been the subject of tampered evidence,[10] and was revoked in December 2023 after a non-Law and Justice government came into power.[11][12]

  1. ^ Ranter, Harro (10 April 2010). "ASN Aircraft accident Tupolev 154M 101 Smolensk Air Base". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 6 June 2017.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference final_polish_report was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ a b Tilles, Daniel (20 May 2022). "Polish court orders arrest of Russian air traffic controller over Smolensk crash". Notes from Poland. Retrieved 20 May 2022.
  4. ^ Day, Matthew (10 April 2014). "Smolensk air disaster 'was caused by mystery explosion'". The Telegraph. Telegraph Media Group. Archived from the original on 10 April 2014. Retrieved 9 December 2015. But in a 200-page report entitled "Four Year after Smolensk: How the President Died," Antoni Macierewicz, an MP from Law and Justice, a party founded by Lech Kaczynski and his twin brother Jaroslaw, claimed the plane was brought down by an explosion. Mr Macierewicz and Mr Kaczynski have long maintained the president was assassinated, possibly by the Russians, and the present Polish government was involved in a cover-up. [...] A recent opinion poll for the TVN news network found that 61 per cent did not believe a bomb was involved while 25 per cent believed the opposite.
  5. ^ Easton, Adam (26 October 2015). "Poland returns to conservative roots with Law and Justice win". BBC News. BBC. Retrieved 20 November 2015. Although [Jaroslaw] Kaczynski has vowed not to seek revenge on his political opponents, there may be an attempt to conduct a final reckoning of the Smolensk tragedy. Mr Kaczynski has actively encouraged wild conspiracy theories that the plane was brought down by a plot, not by pilot error as both the Russian and two Polish investigations have so far found.
  6. ^ Ojewska, Natalia (10 April 2013). "Poland polarised on plane crash anniversary". Al Jazeera. Al Jazeera Media Network. Retrieved 10 December 2015. But a growing number of Poles – about 33 percent according to a recent poll – say they "take into consideration" the possibility that the president was assassinated. Conspiracy theories suggesting an explosion brought the plane down have gained momentum in recent months, mostly among President [Lech] Kacynski's supporters, and continue to polarise the Polish electorate. [...] Kaczynski's brother Jaroslaw, now chairman of the main opposition Law and Justice party, has publicly claimed sabotage brought down [the] aircraft. [Antoni] Macierewicz told Al Jazeera the probe had uncovered evidence that two explosions brought down the aircraft.
  7. ^ Tilles, Daniel (4 April 2022). "Kaczyński: Smolensk crash "was attack decided at highest level of Kremlin"". Notes from Poland. Retrieved 22 March 2023.
  8. ^ "Polish commission again accuses Russia over 2010 Smolensk plane crash". euronews.com. Euronews. 11 April 2022. Retrieved 11 April 2022. Polish officials have reiterated claims that Russia was behind a 2010 plane crash that killed the country's president. A special government commission has once again alleged that the accident was a result of an assassination plan by Moscow.
  9. ^ "Polish panel: Russia behind Polish leader's plane crash". apnews.com. AP News. 11 April 2022. Retrieved 11 April 2022. A Polish government special commission has reinforced its earlier allegations that the 2010 plane crash that killed President Lech Kaczynski and 95 others in Russia was the result of Moscow's assassination plan.
  10. ^ Świerczek, Piotr (12 September 2022). "Podkomisja Macierewicza ukryła dowody niezgodne z tezą o zamachu. Reporter dotarł do dokumentów" (in Polish). TVN24. Retrieved 12 September 2022.
  11. ^ Sejmej, Janusz (15 December 2023). "KOMUNIKAT MON - Ministerstwo Obrony Narodowej - Portal Gov.pl". Ministerstwo Obrony Narodowej (in Polish). Retrieved 15 December 2023.
  12. ^ Ptak, Alicja (16 December 2023). "Smoleńsk crash investigation commission abolished by new Polish government". Notes from Poland. Retrieved 16 December 2023.

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