Logbook Chronicles: Stories From Aviation Past

Log Entry: 28th May, 1987 (39 years ago)

The Event: The Impossible Shenanigans of Matthias Rust

Location: West Germany

Personnel and Equipment Involved: 18-year-old Matthias Rust and a Cessna 172.                                                                                                                                                                                               

 39 years ago, an 18-year-old and a Cessna penetrated the most heavily defended airspace in the world, humiliating one of the greatest empires in history. Here is his absurd story.

Chapter 1: The Stage

It’s 1987---the middle of the Cold War between the US and USSR. The world sits on the brink of nuclear annihilation as the two greatest superpowers in human history face off in a battle of wits, spies, and tech with all humanity at stake. In both nations, the military sits on edge, watching, waiting for any sign of trouble. At the center of this tense time is Germany. The partitioned West and East Germany are currently the hottest, most volatile places on the planet. If nuclear war were to break out anywhere, it would start here.

Enter inexperienced pilot 18-year-old Matthias Rust, a resident of West Germany with only 50 hours of flying experience. On May 13th, 1987, Rust leaves Utersen Airport, on a flying excursion across Europe in his rented Cessna 172. He flies through the Faroe Islands, Iceland, and Norway as a “warm-up” before his “big plan”---a flight to Moscow to promote “world peace”.

Chapter 2: The Flight

12:21, Rust refuels in Finland and takes off, telling ATC he is headed for Stockholm. He proceeds to turn off all communications equipment and disappears from radar, prompting a rescue effort by controllers who assume he’s crashed. Little do they know, Rust is still flying, having made a sharp turn directly towards Moscow.

 At 14:48, Rust crosses into Soviet territory. He’s picked up on radar by Soviet surface-to-air missile systems, but they are denied permission to engage due to his small size and low speed. He flies on unhindered. Eventually, a MiG-23 fighter is scrambled, flying so close that Rust can look the pilot in the eye. However, due to strict new engagement rules, the fighter is denied permission to fire and eventually flies off.

Rust continues to fly, unknowingly, straight into an Air Defence Zone near Lake Seliger. In a massive stroke of luck, the local regiment is conducting maneuver training, so controllers label every plane in the area as "friendly". As he moves past the training zone, however, his low altitude and slow speed catch the eye of Soviet officers. However, in the next in a series of absurd events, the officers hypothesize that Rust's radar signature is just a flock of migratory geese.

As he nears Moscow, he comes over the city of Torzhok. A domestic plane has crashed nearby just a day before, so Soviet ATC controllers mistake him for a helicopter participating in the search and rescue operation. They yet again bestow a friendly clearance on him.

Little do they know, they've just given a teen a "friendly" ticket straight to Moscow.

At 19:00, Rust appears over Moscow.  Incidentally, the Automatic Air Defense System for Moscow is offline for maintenance, so the Soviets assume him to be a domestic pilot flying a typical route. Originally planning to land in the Kremlin, he decides to land in Red Square instead due to fears the KGB would arrest him behind its walls and cover up the stunt. When he comes over the square, however, it is packed with people. He makes numerous unsuccessful attempts at a landing approach. 

After circling a few times, Rust spots Bolshoy Moskvoretsky bridge, which, luckily for him, had been cleared of overhead trolley wires the night before which would otherwise have shredded his plane. It makes the perfect runway with few people on it, so he glides in for a smooth landing.

Chapter 3: The Reception

After touching down, Rust taxis off the bridge and parks his plane right next to St. Basil's Cathedral. When he steps out of his plane, Soviet citizens don’t panic. Assuming he’s doing a propaganda stunt or filming a movie, they crowd around him, asking for autographs. When he tells them he is West German, they laugh him off. He continues signing autographs for a considerable amount of time, dressed in a red jumpsuit.

It takes a bewildered KGB nearly an hour to show up and finally arrest him.

Chapter 4: The Fallout

Following his arrest, Rust is sentenced to 4 years in a labor camp but is pardoned after just 14 months as a goodwill gesture.

The political effect of the event is cataclysmic. A kid had just fooled the largest air defense system in the world and landed in the center of the most important capital in politics. Soviet Leader Mikhail Gorbachev was deeply embarrassed, but used the incident to his political advantage, firing over 300 high-ranking officials that opposed his policies. He proceeds to replace them with allies and more loyal officials who support his views for a more open, liberal Soviet Union. This move, it turns out, played a role in the eventual collapse of the Soviet Union. That’s right---some 18-year-old inadvertently contributed to the end of the most high-stakes conflict ever.

 Epilogue

After his release, Rust’s life didn’t slow down in the slightest. In 1989, while doing community service, he stabbed a co-worker and was sentenced to 15 months in federal prison. In 2001, he was caught for shoplifting, and later faced fraud charges. He later converted to Hinduism, became a professional poker player, worked as a yoga instructor, and a financial analyst. He never flew again.

Rust’s story is one so absurd it’s hard to believe. But I hope you do, or else I’d be fired for misinformation.