Wednesday, September 04, 2024

1983: Remembering the day that the USSR shot down a Korean plane full of civilians

It was a shocker but it did happen many years ago:

"On September 1, 1983, Korean Airlines (KAL) flight 007 was on the last leg of a flight from New York City to Seoul, with a stopover in Anchorage, Alaska

As it approached its final destination, the plane began to veer far off its normal course. 

In just a short time, the plane flew into Russian airspace and crossed over the Kamchatka Peninsula, where some top-secret Soviet military installations were known to be located. 

The Soviets sent two fighters to intercept the plane. 

According to tapes of the conversations between the fighter pilots and Soviet ground control, the fighters quickly located the KAL flight and tried to make contact with the passenger jet. Failing to receive a response, one of the fighters fired a heat-seeking missile. 

KAL 007 was hit and plummeted into the Sea of Japan. All 269 people on board were killed."


The KAL 007 incident was a brutal attack.  It may have also been the beginning of the collapse of the USSR.  Gorbachev came in 2 years later and realized quickly that the USSR needed a lot more than "perestroika".