Under Chernobyls Clound Chantilly 1989 Irony meets Enigma essay by Esteban Erik STipnieks
The historian is constantly researching digging and reviewing. Sometimes data recovered leads to a rethink and a moment of wonder. In September 1989 in Chantilly France the last USA V USSR competition occurred before the Berlin wall fell. The US took the first seven places the last one being taken by a crew worlds apart. The pilot was actually competing on the continent he was born on his co pilot a true son of Texas an Aggie in Austin! It is within the realm of possibility that the first base of the team in Europe was known by the eldest brother of a pilot as a POW camp. That part of the story has been told other part has not been even speculated about….could it be that the best Soviet pilots were unavailable because some had died others were dying many no longer suited for flight?
The Chernobyl disaster only later revealed itself as one of the most horrifying moments in human history. As was later revealed a massive explosion was a frightening
possibility this explosion would have been far worse then the ignition of thermo nuclear device.If you watch the
video the skills that would be effective in precision hover were required for a far more real purpose. Later the same skills were used dropping another material http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZiTQ8OGcYNo 600 of the Soviets best pilots fatally contaminated with radiation 1986.…leaving by 1989 a greatly diminished pool to draw from for the events….none of this was known in the USA at the time. The number of 600 killed received fatal dosage of radiation. Chernobyl was a single incident…..during the entire Vietnam War (ENTIRE WAR) the US lost less then 4 times the number of pilots that were killed trying to deal with a single nuclear reactor fire. One of the deaths was recorded on film and is a grisly reminder of what happened http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aw-ik1U4Uvk lets face Glasnost was not nearly as open as we thought.What was to come within 3 years of after Chantilly would change the world. The extent of internal carnage though would only much later be revealed. Had Chernobyl not happened would the outcome in Chantilly been different? The probability certainly is there. There is also the possibility that the Soviet high command considered the event a bit frivolous therefore not meriting the selection of the most skilled pilots.
The ranks of the Soviet Helicopter pilots had been thinned out by the war in Afghanistan and battle that was fought to prevent what could have the cubing of the greatest nuclear accident in mankind’s history. It can be safely said though the cloud of Chernobyl does hang in mysterious form over the Chantilly fly offs. What can be said is that in September 1989 in Chantilly France threads from Austin, San Antonio, New Braunfels Texas did mingle with threads from the Soviet Union about fall. In a Russian Archive the full specifics lie buried!