Oleksandr Halunenko

Oleksandr Vasylyovych Halunenko (Ukrainian: Олександр Васильович Галуненко) is a Ukrainian test pilot, Honoured Test Pilot of the USSR, the president of the Ukrainian Federation of Aeronautical Sports (member of the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale), and recipient of the title Hero of Ukraine.^[1][2]

Antonov An-225 in 1990. On 11 September 2001, the crew of Oleksandr Halunenko set 214 national and 124 world records in one flight on this aeroplane

Oleksandr Halunenko
Олександр Васильович Галуненко
Born	(1946-03-01) 1 March 1946 (age 78) Troyitske, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet Union
Citizenship	Ukraine
Education	Leningrad Institute of Aviation Instrumentation (1974)
Alma mater	Chernihiv Military Aviation Higher School of Pilots (1968)
Occupations	Soviet Air Force pilot test pilot engineer politician
Years active	1968–present
Employer	Antonov
Known for	testing Antonov An-124 Ruslan and Antonov An-225 Mriya aircraft and aviation records of FAI
Spouse	Olga Halunenko
Children	2
Awards	Hero of Ukraine (1999)
Education	Military aviation – Chernihiv Military Aviation Higher School of Pilots (1968) Test pilot – Fedotov Test Pilot School (1975)
Aviation career
First flight	1965
Flight license	1968 USSR
Air force	Soviet Air Forces

He is known for testing such airplanes as the Antonov An-124 Ruslan and the super giant Antonov An-225 Mriya.

Halunenko received the Hero of Ukraine award for manually landing the second prototype of the Antonov An-70 successfully, after malfunctions of the electronic control system occurred during its April 1997 initial flight. After retiring from flying in 2004, he served a single term in the Ukrainian parliament beginning in 2006. A resident of Bucha, Ukraine, Halunenko survived the battle of Bucha during the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine.^[3]

Awards

• Hero of Ukraine with the Order of the Gold Star (August 21, 1999)^[4]
• Order of Merit (Ukraine) (September 20, 1997)^[5]

References

1. "Oleksandr Halunenko set 214 national and 124 world records in one flight on an Antonov AN-225". 11 September 2019.
2. "Довідка: Галуненко Олександр Васильович". Archived from the original on 2 May 2018. Retrieved 12 September 2019.
3. Altman, Howard (4 May 2022). "An-225 Mriya's first pilot on the tragic destruction of the world's biggest plane". The War Zone. The Drive.
4. "Про нагородження відзнакою П... | від 21.08.1999 № 1043/99". 24 February 2022. Archived from the original on 24 February 2022. Retrieved 14 July 2023.
5. "Про нагородження відзнаками Президента України". Офіційний вебпортал парламенту України (in Ukrainian). Retrieved 14 July 2023.

External links

• "Лётчик Александр Галуненко: при СССР государство относилось к авиапрому более ответственно" ("The pilot Oleksandr Halunenko: during the Soviet Union, the state was more responsible towards aviation industry"), Glavred, 22 September 2016