Polish President and other top officials dead in plane crash

[Waitone]

Cynics amongst us (me, as an example) are forced to comment that the accident, while apparently an accident, had the effect of decapitating Poland's government in a most thorough manner.  Fortunate, is it not, since Poland and Czech--> have been getting kissie faced in an attempt to blunt Russia's influence in the region.  Time will tell who or what benefits from a horrible event.

[Waitone]

Updated details on the crash.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1265482/Leck-Kaczynski-Russia-engineered-plane-crash-claims-Polish-MP.html

[Clem]

I learned of the Katyn Forest over 30 yrs. ago from my Polish thesis advisor. He was captured during the Warsaw uprising in Aug. ’44. When I first heard about the crash I knew they were going to the Katyn Forest and my first reaction was the Russians did it (again). As I learned more, it does sound like a directed screw-up: the pilot recommends going to an alternate and the Polish President orders him to land at the original field, even though it apparently didn’t have appropriate navaids.

If there is any good news in this, it is that apparently the President isn’t the Head of Government in the Polish system. There is another guy, who wasn’t on the plane. They may have lost a bunch of the top government officials, but not the actual head of government.

I was a pilot in the Marine Corps and have landed in below minimum conditions a couple of times. It isn’t something you want to do often. The odds are really against you.