The 4th July 1989 Colonel Nikolai Skuridin (An experienced Mig-23M pilot with 1.700 Flying Hours) departed from the Soviet Bagicz Airbase near Kołobrzeg, Poland.
It was assumed to be a normal training flight. During takeoff, the afterburner failed and the engine began losing power. At an altitude of 150 meters, Skuridin assumed the engine was lost and ejected. The engine had not failed completely, and the aircraft remained airborne, crossing Poland, East and West Germany, where it was intercepted by a pair of U.S. Air Force F-15s of the 32d Tactical Fighter Squadron, which were instructed to down the plane over the North Sea. As the MiG ran out of fuel, it started a slow turn to the south, and ended his 900 km flight into a house near Kortrijk (Belgium), killing a teenager.
After an enquiry, the USSR formally apologized and paid a 685.000$ conpensation to the family of the victim.
by Historical Brain (1)
