According to British media reports citing Ukrainian officials on Sunday (July 2), eight Hawker Hurricane fighter planes from World War Two, originating from the United Kingdom, were discovered in a forest near Kyiv. The National Aviation Museum of Ukraine commenced excavations after an unexploded bomb from the same era was found in the vicinity, leading local authorities to conduct a thorough metal detector search of the entire ravine, which led to the aircraft’s remains.
The remnants of the planes were found close to the unexploded bomb in the forest south of Kyiv, which was formerly part of the USSR until 1991. Oleks Shtan, a former airline pilot leading the excavation, remarked that finding these aircraft in Ukraine was very rare. He emphasized the significance of the discovery for Ukrainian aviation history, as no lend-lease aircraft had been previously found in the country.
During World War Two, the British Hurricane fighter jets were sent as part of the allied military support package for the USSR after the Nazi German invasion in 1941. The United States financed these planes under the lend-lease scheme, which interestingly parallels the current situation where Washington is providing military aid to Kyiv amid its conflict with Moscow.
The discovery of the Hawker Hurricanes is considered unique since these aircraft are seldom found in Ukraine. Historians suggest that some of these planes were intentionally dismantled and buried by the Soviets to avoid repayment to the US under the legislation requiring the USSR to compensate for donated military equipment that remained intact.
Shtan described the Hurricane as a robust and easy-to-fly machine, stable as a gun platform and suitable for inexperienced pilots. He mentioned that the rusty remains of the planes had been stripped of valuable components such as radios, machine guns, and useful scrap metal.
The Hawker Hurricane played a crucial role in the Battle of Britain, shooting down more than half of the enemy aircraft during Nazi Germany’s attempted invasion of the UK. While overshadowed by the Spitfire, the Hurricane’s contribution in 1940 was significant.
Reportedly, a total of 3,000 Hurricanes were sent to the USSR between 1941 and 1944 to support their war efforts. However, most of them were destroyed in combat or later dismantled for spare parts. The National Aviation Museum of Ukraine aims to reassemble the discovered Hurricane fighter jets and exhibit them.
Valerii Romanenko, the head of research at the museum, expressed that the Hurricanes symbolize British assistance during World War Two and acknowledged the current British support. He mentioned how Britain was the first country to provide fighter aircraft to the Soviet Union on a large scale in 1941, and currently, the UK is the first to supply Storm Shadow cruise missiles to the Ukrainian forces.
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