Word: thetford
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Dates: during 1980-1989
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Pilot Jack Thetford, a seasoned veteran of emergency cargo runs, opted to hold course, following the sporadic commands in broken English. The minutes of waiting for the next radio message seemed endless. Since Yerevan is ringed by craggy peaks, even the slightest imprecision in altitude readings could be a matter of life or death. "I looked at my map and could see that at one point they had us heading directly into a mountain," Thetford said afterward...
Only when the first glimmer of lights from the runway shone through the clouds did the tensions in the cockpit ease. "That was too goddam close," said Thetford. Later we learned just how lucky we were. Shortly before our arrival, a Soviet transport plane carrying relief workers to Leninakan, some 60 miles north of Yerevan, crashed. All 78 people aboard perished. A second aircraft, with medical equipment from Yugoslavia, went down as it approached Yerevan, killing the crew...