Ukraine to compensate victims of downed jet

[Robb]

(Robb's note: many have forgotten this even happened, less than a month after 9/11.)

Ukraine to compensate victims of downed jet

The Ukrainian parliament on Thursday ratified a bilateral compensation agreement providing for more than US$7.5 million to be paid to relatives of Israeli passengers killed when a Russian jet was shot down by a Ukrainian missile.

The 450-seat Verkhovna Rada approved the Ukrainian-Israeli deal, which was reached last month, in an open vote with 272 lawmakers in support, Ukraine's private ICTV TV channel said.

All 78 people aboard the Sibir Airlines Tu-154 passenger jet died when it crashed into the Black Sea on Oct. 4, 2001, en route from Israel to Novosibirsk, Russia, after being hit by a stray S-200 missile fired during a military exercise. Most of the victims were recent Russian immigrants to Israel.

Each of the 101 relatives of the 40 Israeli dead will receive nearly US$200,000.

[DUreader]

1. I recall allegations that some micro-biologists were on the flight

Something else seemed strange about the shoot down as well but

I can't recall what

[paulthompson]

3. something fishy?

I looked into the microbiologist story with this flight (the strange rash of microbiologist deaths around that time interests me and I've included it in the 9/11 Timeline I've made). However, I saw no evidence important microbiologists were on that plane except for some internet rumors lacking key facts like the scientists' names.

Another fishy thing about this crash was the wreckage at first appeared to have many bullet holes in it, but apparently after a few days there was a logical explanation given that didn't involve the shooting of bullets.

So this MAY have just been an accident. However, any time a plane full of Israelis is shot down one has to wonder if it was disguised terrorism or what, since that's about the most mouth watering target imaginable for lots of terror groups.

[daleo]

2. 200K * 101 = 20.2 million

According to my spreadsheet program. The article mentions "more than 7.5 million", which leaves a difference of 12.7 million. Don't journalists own calculators?

Also, what about the relatives of the other 38 people?