Plane crash in Brovary: the death of the head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs
On January 18, 2023, at 08:20, in Brovary, Kyiv region, on the territory of the kindergarten, a helicopter of the State Emergency Service EC-225 Super Puma (flight number 54) crashed, on board 10 people. On board were the heads of the Ministry of Internal Affairs: Minister Denis Monastyrsky, First Deputy Minister Yevgeny Yenin and State Secretary of the Ministry Yuriy Lubkovych, their assistants, as well as 3 members of the SNS crew.
As a result of the disaster, the kindergarten building was damaged, which caught fire, knocked out windows in a multi-storey building nearby, three cars were damaged, people were evacuated from nearby buildings. At 09:06 the fire in the building was localized on an area of 500 m², and at 09:28 it was eliminated.
The crash killed 14 people, including one child. 25 people were injured, including 11 children. Among the dead and injured were children and adults who were in kindergarten.
The SBU considered the following versions regarding the causes of the disaster:
- violation of flight rules;
- technical malfunction;
- deliberate actions to destroy the vehicle.
At the time of the crash, 10 people were on board, according to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, three crew members and 7 passengers on board were killed.
Among the passengers:
Denis Monastyrsky — Minister of Internal Affairs;
Yevhenii Yenin — First Deputy Minister;
Yuriy Lubkovych — State Secretary of the Ministry;
Tatyana Shutyak — Deputy Head of the Patronage Service of the Ministry of Internal Affairs;
Mykhailo Pavlushko — Head of Department of Protection of the Department of Internal Security of NPU, Lieutenant Colonel of Police;
Andriy Marinchenko — Senior Operational Commissioner for Particularly Important Affairs of the Department of Internal Security of NPU;
Mykola Anatsky is a leading inspector of the Department of Communications of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, junior lieutenant of the National State University of Ukraine.
Crew members:
Oleksandr Vasylenko — commander of the aircraft;
Konstantin Kovalenko — second pilot;
Ivan Kasyanov is an on-board mechanic, ensign of the civil protection service.
The other victims were children and adults who were in the kindergarten, where the morning meeting of visitors was just ending.
On the same day, the Cabinet of Ministers created a commission to investigate the causes of the crash of the SNSS helicopter in Brovary.
On November 27, 2023, the State Bureau of Investigation completed the pre-trial investigation of the plane crash in Brovary, which occurred on January 18, which killed 14 people, including the leadership of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine.
This was reported by the Prosecutor General's Office and the press service of the SBI.
According to the investigation, five officials of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine, who were declared suspects in August, violated the safety rules of the helicopter, on board which the leadership of the Ministry of Internal Affairs was on board.
Suspicion reported:
- Head of the Department of Aviation and Aviation Search and Rescue of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine;
- acting commander of a special aviation unit;
- to the deputy commander for flight training;
- the commander of the aviation squadron;
- to the head of the flight safety service of the Special Aviation Detachment of the Operational Rescue Service of the Civil Protection of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine from the city of Nizhyn, Chernihiv region.
The investigation found that officials committed flagrant violations of traffic safety rules and the operation of air transport, which resulted in the death of people. SBI investigators reconstructed the day of the accident by minute, including deciphering the “black boxes”.
It was established that in January 2023 a visit of the leadership of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine to Kharkiv and Dnipropetrovsk regions was planned. Officials of the State Emergency Service involved a helicopter in the transportation of the delegation, which was on duty to respond to potential emergencies. The aircraft did not have permits for other types of flights.
The crew commander began the flight without meteorological data throughout the route of the planned movement, and the crew did not have the appropriate flight permits in difficult weather conditions and the necessary certificates. None of the officials responsible for flight safety canceled or postponed the flight until the onset of favorable weather conditions.
Due to difficult weather conditions, the helicopter flew at an extremely low altitude. The crew commander saw an obstacle and, carrying out the maneuver, lost his orientation and allowed a collision with the ground.
At present, the suspects, their defenders, the victims and their representatives have the opportunity to familiarize themselves with the case materials, which will then be transferred to the court.
In accordance with Art. 62 According to the Constitution of Ukraine, a person is considered innocent of the commission of a crime and may not be subject to criminal punishment until his guilt is proven in a lawful manner and established by an indictment of the court.
