English

Funeral for two Air Force pilots in Baranavichy

Thousands of mourners gathered in Baranavichy, Brest region, on Thursday to pay their last respects to two military pilots killed in an aircraft crash in Poland on August 30.

Alyaksandr Marfitski and Alyaksandr Zhurawlevich died as their Su-27UBM jet fighter crashed at an air show in Radom, a city some 62 miles south of Warsaw.

Attending the funeral were delegations of the Council of Ministers, the National Assembly of Belarus, the defense ministry, the Belarusian Armed Forces’ General Staff, the Brest Regional Executive Committee, all military air bases, the Russian Knights aerobatic team and the Polish army, as well as Polish priests.

Polish army officers laid square-shaped wreaths at the closed caskets, which were draped with Belarusian Air Force flags and had the pilots’ caps placed on top of them according to tradition.

The pilots were buried at a cemetery a few miles off Baranavichy.

The 53-year-old Marfitski was deputy head of the Western Operational and Tactical Command of the Air and Air Defense Force, while the 46-year-old Zhurawlevich was deputy commander of the 61st Fighter Air Base in Baranavichy.

The pilots had a total flying time of more than 4,000 hours and were among the country’s 20 military pilots with the top level of qualification.

Colonel Marfitski is survived by his wife and two daughters, while Colonel Zhurawlevich is survived by his wife and a daughter.