RUSSIAN SU-27 CRASHES IN RURAL LITHUANIA; NO

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 VILNIUS 000977

SIPDIS

STATE FOR EUR/NB

E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/15/2014
TAGS: PREL PGOV PINS MOPS LH
SUBJECT: RUSSIAN SU-27 CRASHES IN RURAL LITHUANIA; NO
INJURIES REPORTED

REF: 04 VILNIUS 845

Classified By: Pol/Econ Officer Gregory L. Bernsteen for Reasons 1.4(b)
and (d)


1. (C) SUMMARY. A Russian fighter-bomber reportedly en route
from St. Petersburg to Kaliningrad crashed in the Sokiai
region of Lithuania shortly after 1500 local time on
September 15. Lithuanian authorities have detained the pilot
and are investigating the incident. The Russian Government
has apologized and offered compensation for damages.
Lithuania's Defense Minister pointed to the Russian incursion
on Lithuanian airspace as justification for maintaining the
NATO air policing capabilities in the Baltics. END SUMMARY.

Lost in Lithuanian Airspace?
--------------


2. (SBU) A Russian Su-27 Flanker fighter-bomber crashed in
Lithuanian territory, September 15. The plane, which had
been flying over neutral waters in the Baltic Sea with five
other Su-27s as escorts for an A-50 remote surveillance and
reconnaissance plane, left formation and entered Lithuanian
airspace shortly after 1500. After approximately six minutes
of flight within Lithuanian airspace, the pilot ejected and
the aircraft crashed just east of Jurbarkas, in the Sokiai
region of Lithuania. The site is 40 kilometers from the
Lithuania-Kaliningrad border and about 110 kilometers from
the Baltic Sea.


3. (SBU) GOL DefMin Gediminas Kirkilas, in a public statement
issued at 1800 on September 15, said that it appeared the
Russian aircraft had entered Lithuanian airspace illegally.
The pilot of the Russian plane told Lithuanian police after
the crash that his navigation systems had failed and he had
not known his location. He said that he had ejected from the
plane once his fuel ran out. Police detained the pilot,
conducted a brief initial interrogation, and took him to a
nearby hospital for examination. After examining doctors
released the pilot, the police took him into custody,
subsequently transferring him to the Prosecutor General in
Vilnius for further questioning.

NATO Air Police - in the air as plane hits ground
-------------- --------------


4. (C) Lt. Colonel Arturas Balynas, commander of the Zokniai
airfield hosting NATO's Baltic air policing mission, told us
that that his command had been tracking the Russian formation
over the Baltic and were immediately aware of the intrusion
into Lithuanian airspace. Balynas said that the German
squadron currently based at Zokniai scrambled in response to
the incursion, but by the time the planes were airborne, the
Russian Su-27 had crashed. (NOTE: The NATO standard for
response is 15 minutes. According to Balynas, the NATO
aircraft need seven minutes to lift off. The United States
relieves Germany of the air policing function here on October
1, serving here until the end of December.)

Aftermath of the Crash
--------------


5. (SBU) The GOR has issued a formal apology and agreed to
pay for any damages on the ground. GOL officials told us
that Russia had requested permission to send two helicopters
from Kaliningrad to recover the aircraft and asked for the
return of the pilot and the Su-27's black box. DefMin
Kirkilas commented that Lithuania would "take its time" in
handing over the pilot. The MFA's Director for Security
Policy, Algis Dabkus, told us the GOL refused entry of the
helicopters.


6. (SBU) Dabkus said the Government had established three
investigatory commissions. The first, an interagency group
that Defense Staff Chief Brig. General Vitalijus Vaiksnoras
heads, is already looking into what happened and analyzing
the government response to the crisis. A second group that
the Chief of Defense General Valdas Tutkus has convened will
consider the larger questions of air policing and NATO
security policy in the Baltics. Air Force Chief Jonas
Marcinkus's third commission will investigate the military
implications. Dabkus said that Russia may participate in
some of these investigations down the road.

Russian Air Incursions Nothing New
--------------


7. (C) Russian violations of Lithuanian airspace are nothing
new, although this is the first crash of an errant aircraft
of which we are aware. Russian and Belarusian aircraft
frequently cross into Baltic airspace without permission,
with over 5,000 recorded violations in Lithuania alone since
1992 (reftel). Kirkilas commented to the press that this
most recent incursion underscores why Lithuania and the
Baltics have a continued need for long-term NATO air
policing.


8. (C) COMMENT. Lithuanians who continue to worry about
Russian plans to exert influence over the Baltics point to
airspace incursions as demonstrable evidence of GOR bad will.
The crash of a Russian fighter well inside Lithuanian
territory will reinforce Lithuania's fears regarding national
security and defense. The crash will also add one more layer
of complication to the GOL-Russia relationship. The incident
will likely strengthen the GOL's determination to maintain
NATO's air-policing mission in the Baltics over the long
term.


9. (C) The GOL's confidence in dealing with this difficult
situation is striking. When we first heard the news, we
expected urgent calls for guidance from the GOL, but they
never came. Instead, GOL ministries and the military swung
into action on the diplomatic, security, and technical
fronts. The Lithuanians also appear to be handling the
Russians without allowing the situation to escalate.
KELLY