Polish President R.I.P. [*]

[szron]

Never liked him.

Was ashamed that he was president of Poland.

But now, I feel wrong, so wrong.

http://edition.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/europe/04/10/poland.president.plane.crash/index.html?hpt=T1

Our president Lech Kaczy?ski died along with 88 government dignitaries and 6 members of crew.

We didn't only lost President and First Lady.

Also died:

-Vice-marshals of parliament

-Vice-marshals of senate

-Chief of BBN (Bureau of National Security)

-Chief of NBP (Polish National Bank)

-9 agents of BOR (government security agency)

-Secretary of State in President's Office

-Polish Army Chief of Staff

-Chief of President's Office

-Polish Army Chief of Navy

-Polish Army Chief of Airforce

-Polish Army Chief of Ground Forces

-Polish Army Chief of Special Forces

And many more...

[Ale]

i saw it in yahoo

terrible 95 persons died

[picicch]

We have National Mourning, this crash situation is terrible for all Poland [*]

[917893678251]

Who's running your country now and who's gonna replace them?

[szron]

Marshall of Parlament for now.

There will be election in 60 days.

[erfd]

That horrible. You guys lost almost all of your top leaders. Wish you guys luck.

[randomperson139]

I saw about this on the BBC news. It's terrible that so many people have died.

R.I.P.

[Vfox]

i am one not to really care of politicians however no one should lose there life like that!

RIP

[max5c]

Polish President Lech Kaczynski is died 10 April 2010 (Saturday) in a plane crash while flying to celebrate the 70 anniversary of the massacre of Polish officers in Katyn forest in 1942. The President was flying with his wife, and the key policies in our country. For us, the Poles very difficult moments.

Polish President Lech Kaczynski is dead, along with his wife, the head of Poland's central bank and various other senior government officials, after the plane they were travelling in crashed Saturday in western Russia.

Kaczynski, 60, and his entourage were flying from Warsaw to the Russian city of Smolensk for a memorial service when the aircraft crashed as it came in for a landing in thick fog, officials said.

Russian and Polish officials said there were no survivors among the 96 people aboard the presidential aircraft, a 26-year-old Tupolev Tu-154.

'I knew that his whole life had been dedicated to the fight for the freedom of Poland and the freedom of Europe'—German Chancellor Angela Merkel

"We still cannot fully understand the scope of this tragedy and what it means for us in the future. Nothing like this has ever happened in Poland," Foreign Ministry spokesman Piotr Paszkowski said.

Government and military officials were heading to Russia for ceremonies marking the 70th anniversary of the 1940 Katyn Forest massacre, when Soviet secret police killed 22,000 Polish officers.

The Polish Foreign Ministry confirmed the president and his wife, Maria, were on board. Passengers also included Poland's army chief, Franciszek Gagor, Deputy Foreign Minister Andrzej Kremer, central bank governor Slawomir Skrzypek and other officials. Others on board included three legislators, the deputy parliament speaker, the army's chaplain, Poland's civil rights commissioner and at least two presidential aides, the ministry said.

According to a list provided by Poland's national memorial committee, 85 of the victims were part of the Polish state delegation.

The accident was not expected to directly affect the functioning of Polish government. Poland's president is commander in chief of its armed forces but the position's domestic duties are chiefly symbolic.

The prime minister, Donald Tusk, and other top government ministers were not aboard the plane.

Aircraft hit ground, burst into flames

The plane tilted to the left before crashing, witness Slawomir Sliwinski told the state news channel Rossiya-24. He said there were two loud explosions when the aircraft hit the ground and burst into flames.

Rossiya-24 showed footage from the crash site, with pieces of the plane scattered widely amid leafless trees and small fires burning in woods shrouded with fog.

An image from Polish television's TVP shows a firefighter amid the wreckage of the crashed presidential aircraft. (TVP via APTN/Associated Press)

According to the Aviation Safety Network, there have been 66 crashes involving Tu-154s, including six in the past five years.

The Russian carrier Aeroflot recently withdrew its Tu-154 fleet from service.

The presidential plane was fully overhauled in December, the general director of the Aviakor aviation maintenance plant in Samara, Russia, told Rossiya-24.

Bronislaw Komorowski, leader of the lower house of parliament, has taken over as acting president and has declared a week of national mourning.

According to Poland's constitution, he must announce a new presidential election within two weeks and the vote — which had been due in October — must take place within two months of Komorowski's announcement.

World leaders express shock, sadness

World leaders sent condolences to Polish officials and praised the president's dedication to democracy.

Poland's ambassador to Canada, Zenon Kosiniak-Kamysz, said the list of government officials is long and "the number of victims is shocking." He was informed of the crash early Saturday and knew many people on the flight.

Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper offered his condolences to Poland and Polish-Canadians, while praising Kaczynski's achievements.

"President Lech Kaczynski was a man who stood proudly and defiantly for democracy and human rights through even the most difficult times. His sudden passing is a great loss for his country and for his many friends here in Canada, particularly within the Polish-Canadian community.

"On behalf of the government of Canada and all Canadians, I wish to express my deepest sympathy, and my sincere condolences, to the government and people of Poland on this very sad day," Harper said.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said she was shocked and saddened by the death of Kaczynski and other top Polish officials.

“I am so deeply upset by the accident and the death of the Polish president,” Merkel said. "I knew that his whole life had been dedicated to the fight for the freedom of Poland and the freedom of Europe. We will miss Lech Kaczynski in Germany too.

"Germany is mourning today with the whole Polish people."

U.S. President Barack Obama issued a statement saying, "the loss is devastating to Poland, to the United States, and to the world."

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown said Kaczynski was "one of the defining actors in Poland's modern political history.

"We know the difficulties that Poland has gone through, the sacrifices that he himself made as part of the Solidarity movement. We know the contribution he made to the independence and the freedom of Poland," Brown said.

"On this difficult day the people of Russia stand with the Polish people," Russian President Dmitry Medvedev told the Polish prime minister in a telephone call.

[picicch]

[*] Rest In Peace [*] Spoczywajcie w pokoju [*]

We will never forget you

Thank you to all heads of state's, people and forum user's for Support

[Ami89E1234]

Sad but offers a valuable life lesson: why not to put essentially your entire government on a SINGLE plane, let alone a 20 year old Russian one.

Now who's up for Yakety Sax?

[TacticalRooster22]

Very sad. What a horrible way to die. He served Poland well.

[szron]

Sad but offers a valuable life lesson: why not to put essentially your entire government on a SINGLE plane, let alone a 20 year old Russian one.

You got a point. This moron who put them all in one plane is probably responsible for decapitating our entire Army Command.

[Ami89E1234]

Correction: 42 year old Russian plane but it's still pretty bad. So how are the emergency elections going to work? (Like who is running or something like that I guess)

[BritishArmyReserveCadets]

lucky you, no more politics or goverment for a while

[Guest seanny]

R.I.P Polish president