A piano was burned in memory of the fallen pilots in Mykolaiv

In Mykolaiv, a piano was burned in memory of the pilots of the 299th tactical aviation brigade named after Lieutenant General Vasyl Nikiforov who died in the war.

The video of the ritual was published on the brigade's Facebook page.

Before burning, the names and callsigns of the dead pilots were engraved on the piano. The last melody on the instrument was played by the leader of the jazz orchestra «Performance Big Band», volunteer Volodymyr Alekseev. He continued to play even after the piano was set on fire.

«The piano continues to play even in the fire. Yes, the order floats, but it sounds... And burns while standing. To the last... Eternal memory to the Heroes...», — the musician commented on his Facebook page.

The ritual was held in memory of the pilots of the brigade, who went to heaven forever. Including:

• lieutenant colonel Oleksandr Zhibrov;
• captain Oleksandr Shcherbakov;
• Hero of Ukraine, Colonel Gennadii Matuliak;
• captain Andrii Antikhovich;
• Hero of Ukraine, Captain Oleksandr Korpan;
• captain Vadym Moroz;
• Hero of Ukraine, captain Yehor Serediuk;
• Hero of Ukraine, Captain Serhii Parkhomenko;
• Hero of Ukraine, Major Oleksandr Kukurba;
• Hero of Ukraine, lieutenant colonel Vadym Blagovisnyi;
• Hero of Ukraine, Major Danylo Murashko.

It should be noted that the ritual of burning the piano is a tradition of American military pilots, which is still preserved today. The story begins with the Second World War, with the Battle of Britain. At that time, many American young men helped the British in the fight against the aggressor in the ranks of volunteer aviators. They were assigned to full-time British squadrons. A British pilot served in one of these squadrons, who played the piano for his comrades in the evening after each sortie. During one of the combat missions, his plane was shot down and the pianist died. Then his American compatriots decided that no one else could play like him, and burned a musical instrument in his memory. Later, volunteer units became part of the US Air Force, and the tradition took root. Since then, US pilots have been setting pianos on fire in memory of pilots killed in action. It was also adopted by the Ukrainians after the start of a full-scale war.

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It will be recalled that on October 11, near the city of Starokostyantynov in Khmelnytskyi region , a memorial sign was opened at the place of death of the pilot of the Mykolaiv Brigade, Hero of Ukraine Captain Oleksandr Korpan.

Also, near the village of Suvorivka, Yelanets community, Mykolaiv region, a monument was opened at the place of death of the Hero of Ukraine, Lt. Col. Vadym Blagovisnyi.

And on August 8, near the village of Andronivka in the Dnipropetrovsk region, a monument to the Hero of Ukraine, Major Oleksandr Kukurba, was opened. He served in the Mykolaiv 299th Tactical Aviation Brigade named after Lieutenant General Vasyl Nikiforov.