Armenian citizen causes air conflict between Ukraine and Belarus

Ukraine’s Security Service (SSU) turned around a passenger plane en route from Kiev to Minsk, a statement issued by Belavia airlines claims.

According to the aviation company’s statement, its passenger plane bound for Minsk was forced to return to Zhulyany airport after departing from Kiev after the aircraft’s pilot received an order from a Ukrainian traffic controller to immediately head back, with no further explanation.

“On October 21, 2016, Belavia Boeing 737-800 number EW-456PA, carrying out flight V2-840 from Zhulyany (Kiev) to Minsk was forced to return to the departure airport. There were 136 passengers and six crew members on board,” Belavia said in a statement, noting that, according to the flight schedule, the plane was a mere 50 kilometers from the Belarusian border when it was ordered to turn back.

“It was also stated that in case the order was not fulfilled, fighter jets would be sent into the air,” the statement continued. The conversation between the pilot and air traffic controllers, including the threat to send fighter jets to intercept the plane, has been recorded and is currently in possession of Belavia, the company’s deputy director general, Igor Cherginets said.

"We communicate with air traffic controllers in English, but in this case he contacted us in Russian. We were in the Kiev sector. He contacted us and said that we must return to the Zhulyany airport," the captain Viktor Shyshlo said.

Upon landing in Kiev, one of the passengers was taken off the flight by Ukrainian law enforcement before the plane was refueled and allowed to continue its flight to Minsk.

The passenger who appears to have been the cause of the incident was later released by authorities the same day and left Kiev for Minsk at 7pm. According to Strana.ua news outlet, he has been identified as Armen Martirosyan, a journalist, blogger, and anti-Maidan activist.

According to the outlet, Martirosyan left Kiev and moved to Moscow back in 2014 after the Maidan revolution in Ukraine. In a Facebook post published after the incident, he wrote that he has already returned to Moscow and will reveal the details of his detention in Kiev and plans for further action after he speaks to his lawyers.