Twice a Survivor, or Against Death
Basically, he's not the only one.
among the aces of the highest order.
And yet Alexander Rutskoi
remembered especially.
We sit in the car with him
hurry to detour to the parking lot
what would our dust not hurt
flying Tanks.
Climbed on a long wing,
stepped into the cockpit
- Sorry, you were unlucky -
for one car!
Viktor Verstakov
among the aces of the highest order.
And yet Alexander Rutskoi
remembered especially.
We sit in the car with him
hurry to detour to the parking lot
what would our dust not hurt
flying Tanks.
Climbed on a long wing,
stepped into the cockpit
- Sorry, you were unlucky -
for one car!
Viktor Verstakov
Alexander Vladimirovich Rutskoi was born on September 16, 1947 in the city of Proskurov, Ukrainian SSR (now Khmelnitsky) in a family with military traditions: grandfather, Rutskoi Alexander Ivanovich, served in the railway troops, father, Rutskoi Vladimir Alexandrovich (1926-1991), was a tanker, fought on front and went to Berlin, was awarded six orders. His mother, Zinaida Iosifovna, worked in the service sector.
Today, the majority remembers A. Rutsky as an unsuccessful politician who entered the Kremlin on the red carpet, and who came out in handcuffs. But it was in stories his life is one event compared to which Hollywood action movies look like tales.
In early 1986, fierce battles broke out between the mujahideen and government forces in almost all provinces of Afghanistan. To suppress pockets of resistance and provide reliable cover for government troops, the command of the Soviet limited contingent of troops in Afghanistan decided to use an assault Aviation. At that time, the first regiment of attack aircraft (378th), armed with the new Su-25 attack aircraft, which, in fact, underwent military tests there, had already arrived in Afghanistan. This regiment was commanded by Alexander Rutskoi. During his stay in Afghanistan (1986 and 1988), he flew 456 sorties, of which 125 at night.
It seemed that the appearance in the Afghan sky of a well-protected, maneuverable and well-armed aircraft would significantly reduce the losses of Soviet troops. However, in the same 1986, the Afghan Mujahideen massively received man-portable anti-aircraft missile systems (MANPADS) capable of fighting Soviet aircraft. It was one of these complexes that was first shot down by A. Rutskaya. It happened on April 6, 1986, during the 360th sortie. Su-25 Rutskoy was shot down from the ground by the American Redeye MANPADS in the Khosta area near the village of Javara near the Pakistani border.
By that time Javara was one of the main points of resistance. It was reliably covered from air attacks by anti-aircraft points, which did not allow helicopters to land troops. The operation was in jeopardy. It was to identify and further destroy these firing points that it was decided to use Su-25 attack aircraft. In fact, the link of A. Rutskoy was supposed to cause fire on himself in order to reveal the hated machine-gun nests.
“To cause fire on yourself” is to fly at a minimum height. You start to shoot from everything that shoots. Being in a cold-blooded situation is very difficult. In addition, you need to believe in your armored plane, in that it will not let you down. “Therefore, you go at an extremely low altitude,” A. Rutskoi recalled, “and you hear how they hit the cockpit with a sledgehammer and a hammer - these are bullets.” Shells and machine-gun bullets flew from everywhere. Suddenly, a white trail stretched from the ground to Rutskoi's plane. A moment later, a blow, and Rutskoy's plane was engulfed in flames. It was the first MANPADS missile. “The first rocket,” continues A. Rutskoi, “hit the right engine, it caught fire. The second rocket hits the burning engine again. I was just turning around, performing a maneuver in the direction of our troops. After hitting the second missile, the control of the aircraft fails, the aircraft begins to tumble in chaotic directions. It so happened that I catapulted almost head first to the ground at a height of 50-60 meters... Well, of course, I broke all over. After a hard blow to the ground, pain engulfed the entire body - the spine was damaged. The thought flashed through my head: “The main thing is that I survived”. But that was not the end of it. The pilot fell into a neutral zone, between the units of the dushmans and the Afghan army, at the center of a tough battle. Dushmans with powerful fire did not allow the Afghan and Soviet soldiers to approach the pilot, trying to capture him as a prisoner (for the captive pilot, the Mujahideen received up to 1 million dollars). “I am in the neutral zone - on the right is the fortified Javara base with well-trained and armed Mujahideen, on the other side there are Afghans. And here who is who, because everyone rushed to me. I was lucky that the Afghans approached me first. The commander of the Afghan battalion covered me with his whole body, because a new powerful shelling began. I received two wounds - one in the leg, the second in the back..
According to doctors, Rutskoi survived by a miracle. After treatment at the hospital, he was suspended from flying and was assigned to Lipetsk to the post of deputy chief of the Combat Training Center of the Air Forces of the USSR. After training under the cosmonaut program at the Seventh Institute of Space Medicine, he returns to service.
In April, Mr. A. Rutskoi, 1988, was appointed Deputy Commander of the Air Force of the 40 Army and again sent to Afghanistan. As for the first time, despite the high position, he continued to fly regularly. In April-August, 97 made sorties, of which 48 was out at night.
A. Rutskoi in Afghanistan, 1988. Frame from documentary
In one of the first sorties, A. Rutskoy's car was severely damaged by anti-aircraft fire, but he was able to bring the plane to the base and land it. After a short repair, Rutskoy's plane was hit by two AIM-9L missiles fired from F-16A fighters during a combat mission in the border zone over Pakistani territory. But in this case, he managed to save the car and return to the airfield. The second time Rutskoi was shot down on 4 August.
August 4, 1988, an area near the Pakistani border. Taking off on a mission to destroy the ammunition depots of the Afghan Mujahideen, Colonel Rutskoy did not even think that he would be shot down by a Pakistani Air Force fighter. He did not know then that one of his colleagues had betrayed him, having provided the Pakistani side with information that it was Rutskoi who would fly to that area. Later, the traitor received political asylum in the United States. After the ejection, Alexander Vladimirovich ended up in enemy territory.
After five days, having traveled about 30 km, the pilot was surrounded by dushmans of Gulbidin Hekmatyar and taken prisoner. He was beaten, beaten so that it seemed there would be no end to it, and the picture the next day seemed like a complete nightmare. One morning, according to A. Rutskoy, when he opened his eyes, he saw that he was hanging on a rack. Under his feet, the blood of a lamb prepared for the evening prayer flowed. Whose blood would drain here the next morning, he no longer doubted. “The first thought,” recalls A. Rutskoi, “that came into my head: well, everything came. So I hung up the next morning. And in the morning Pakistani helicopters arrived, spetsnaz men jumped out of them, all tall and steep ... It almost came to an exchange of fire between them and dushmans ... But I was taken away, loaded into a helicopter, and - into Pakistan ”. According to other sources, the gang received three million US dollars for the Soviet pilot. In Pakistan, Rutskoy was waiting for first aid, a prison, a piece of bread and a mug of water. Ahead was the unknown and the undying hope for the help of their own. But the search for the downed pilot was carried out in neighboring Afghanistan, so they were not successful. They connected the KGB, and he - his agents in Pakistan. But the pilot sank into the ground. Pakistani President Zia-ul-Haq did not respond to diplomatic inquiries from the Soviet side, although he was aware of the matter from the very beginning. As if on cue, all news agencies were also silent. Such secrecy was specially organized by the CIA, which had its own interest in the downed pilot. It was the CIA who insisted that the Pakistani secret services wrest the Soviet pilot from the hands of the Mujahideen at any cost. “They still figured out who I am. At first I said that I was Major Ivanov, etc. Well, the general scheme. But when they transferred to the intelligence center, then the processing went on in full ... The task that was set? Here is a map of Afghanistan. Put on it the procedure for the withdrawal of Soviet troops, where we leave warehouses for the Afghan army, in a word, reveal the entire operation for the withdrawal of Soviet troops ... These were specially trained people who had some recruiting experience, CIA intelligence officers, this was clearly visible ". And it was true. Engaged A. Rutsky Milt Birdon, cadre intelligence officer, resident of the CIA in Pakistan.
Right Milt Birdon. A frame from the television interview of A. Rutsky to the channel "REN TV"
For information, Rutskoi was offered a new passport and a large sum of money as a reward. The conversations were conducted correctly at the first stage, then there were threats, then correct conversations again. That is, the processing was carried out according to the “evil and good investigator” scheme. Threats alternated with offers to get a new passport, for example, a Canadian citizen, and a comfortable life in any country in the world. In fact, they offered to commit treason to the Motherland. “To go on treason ... Although at some point somewhere in the subconscious it was that they would be dismissed from the army right now, there could be no question of any flight work. Send somewhere in tmutarakan ... It was like that. It was. We know our history, we know what happened to those who were captured. On the other hand, there was a desire to leave. ”. Milt Birdon called Rutsky the most important prisoner of war in Afghanistan. Therefore, he increased the security, often changed his place of detention. According to A. Rutskoi, he was transported by helicopter blindfolded. “How the prisoner is transported. Black cap on the head, hands back, handcuffs. And go ahead. First they were sent to Peshawar, then to Islamabad... And what can be seen, blindfolded. They take off the cap - a new place, new people. And again, everything starts anew: they lay out a map, ask questions, and away we go ... They ask me to name the tactical and technical data of the Su-25 aircraft. They were very interested in the Su-25 aircraft ... I played the fool, tried to get at least some information about me to my people, what was happening to me, where I am ”. And this information finally reached the Soviet intelligence services.
Alexander Rutskoi is still sure that one of his guards handed her over. With some effort, Moscow was able to negotiate the exchange of Rutskoi for one of the CIA agents. According to others, it was a citizen of Pakistan, who was accused of espionage against the USSR. The exchange took place on 16 August 1988 in the Soviet embassy in Islamabad. “I and the representatives of the Pakistani and American sides on the one hand, the intelligence officer and the Soviet representatives on the other. I go to my, he goes to his. That's all, ”recalls A. Rutskoi.
Unfortunately, that was not all. Rutskoi still needed to be taken out of Pakistan. And take it out secretly in order to keep the clause of the exchange agreement, all its details. Also, the Mujahideen leaders might not like it. Therefore, the employees of the Soviet embassy in Islamabad hastily bought clothes and prepared false documents. At night, disguised Alexander Rutskoy was taken to the airfield. “I flew from there incognito. At the embassy, everyone prepared, determined when we would fly to Asadabad (the territory of Afghanistan), which documents would be therewith. There was no passport, only a certificate of permission to cross the border. ”. With this testimony, Alexander Rutskoi flew to the Union.
This is the version of Rutskoi himself.
The document at the border. A frame from the television interview of A. Rutsky to Ren TV channel.
Journalist Andrei Karaulov in his book "Russian Sun" described a different version.
Having learned about the captured Rutskoi, Colonel General B. Gromov, who commanded the Soviet contingent of troops in Afghanistan, urgently contacted D. Yazov, the Minister of Defense of the USSR, and he contacted E. Shevardnadze, who served as Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Soviet Union. According to Karaulov, the Soviet Union's ambassador to Pakistan, Yakunin, and military attache Bely handed over compensation to Hekmatyar. He received military equipment, about a million dollars in cash, and (at his personal request) a new black Volga. Under Pakistani law, Rutskoi was threatened with 15 years in the mines for flying in a combat armed aircraft in the airspace of non-belligerent Pakistan. Gromov had a good attitude towards Rutskoi, but here the case smacked of an international scandal, especially since the violation was committed not by an ordinary pilot, but by the deputy commander of the air army. “Before Gorbachev everything was presented as follows. Saving his attack aircraft, the Colonel Rutskoi, attacked by the Mujahideen, accomplished the feat and is worthy of the Hero's star, but turned out to be a captive like Karbyshev..
Asia Tulekova from Kazakhstan, who was taken for a special operation to free the famous pilot, told her version of the release of Alexander Rutsky for two reasons: first, she could be a translator, and second, she was Muslim. It is the second factor, as GRU officers believed, that was to play a decisive role in negotiations with the Mujahideen.
Asia was sent to Afghanistan as a bacteriologist. Apart from the fact that she monitored all sources of water, checked the wells for the presence of poisons and provided medical assistance to the local population, Asia watched whether our soldiers and officers were taking narcotic drugs.
“When I saw our famous Sasha Rutskoy being held captive by dushmans,” recalls Asia Tulekova, “I thought: this is the most terrible sight that I have ever seen. Alexander always attracted women's views, he was an unusually handsome man, there were real legends about the heroism of the commander of the "rooks" regiment. But even his mother probably could not recognize Sasha at that moment. The pride of the Soviet army and the object of fierce hatred of the Mujahideen lay in front of us almost naked and completely gray-haired. His whole body was covered with bruises, abrasions and bruises. Alexander was tortured by applying red-hot iron stars to his skin. He was unconscious.".
“I was assigned the duties of an interpreter. But what the spooks told me personally, I was embarrassed to translate to our officers. These bastards, who tortured a person, insulted me with indecent words, while they themselves calmly ate pilaf and barbecue, drank soft drinks. An officer was dying in front of them: let him be an enemy, but there must be compassion even for opponents! I told them about this, adding that true Muslims never do this. Then the enraged soldier hit me with the butt of his machine gun. He probably thought that I would cry, I would be scared. But I did not have a drop of fear, only contempt and hatred. If you consider yourself a valiant warrior, then you have no right to mock and mock at those who are tied to a tree with ropes ... We negotiated for three days, I still don’t know how much the dushmans valued Alexander’s head (then secrecy was observed in everything). But we still saved him and were able to take him out of captivity. Doctors stated that he had complete amnesia, he remembered absolutely nothing..
Four months after the liberation, December 8 1988, by the decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR A.V. Rutskoi was awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union, with the award of the Order of Lenin and the Gold Star medal (No. 11589).
Six months after the liberation, the Soviet-Afghan war ended. The war, which became both terrible and bright page in the biography of Alexander Vladimirovich.
The next time A. Rutskoi came to Pakistan in 1991. From December 17 to 22, Rutskoi visited Pakistan, Afghanistan and Iran, where he negotiated the extradition of Soviet prisoners of war. After the meeting with Rutskoi, the Pakistani authorities handed over to Moscow a list of 54 prisoners of war who were with the Mujahideen. 14 of them were still alive at that time. But in general, unfortunately, Rutskoi's attempt did not bring much success.
Sources:
M. Feschuk Against Death // Proskurov Newspaper. May 2010
Karelin A.P. Air Workers Wars // http://artofwar.ru/k/karelin_a_p/karelin2-10.shtml.
TV interview A. Rutskogo channel REN TV, 2008,
Who rescued Rutskoi from captivity? // Express K, 8 September 2015
Information