The Passenger Plane Shot down by the Russians

About the Book

The novel is set in the Soviet Union. It describes a well known episode in the Cold War when Soviet fighters shot down a Korean passenger plane on the 1st September 1983. The story is based on the official Soviet statements, issued on the 2nd, 3rd and 6th September. Only the third one admitted that their fighters had brought down the plane. Behind this succession of contradictory versions lies a debate. What went on behind the scenes? The main character is Nikolai Taranenko in charge of the Electronics Laboratory of the Soviet Armed Forces. He is brilliant in his job, greatly respected by the authorities. After destroying the plane the Soviet leadership realised that it was a blunder. The KGB arrested Taranenko blaming him for the lack of a device that could have recognised the plane as being a passenger plane. But then Taranenko turns the tables…

About the Author

Laszlo Solymar was born and educated in Hungary. In the aftermath of the Hungarian Revolution he escaped to England. He joined the University of Oxford in 1966 where he is now an Emeritus Professor. During his career he had Visiting Professorships at the Universities of Paris, Copenhagen, Osnabruck, Berlin, Madrid, Budapest and London.