{"id":439416,"date":"2022-04-29T18:49:50","date_gmt":"2022-04-29T15:49:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/ghost-of-kyiv-major-stepan-tarabalka-killed-in-battle\/"},"modified":"2022-04-29T18:49:50","modified_gmt":"2022-04-29T15:49:50","slug":"ghost-of-kyiv-major-stepan-tarabalka-killed-in-battle","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/ghost-of-kyiv-major-stepan-tarabalka-killed-in-battle\/","title":{"rendered":"#&#8217;Ghost of Kyiv&#8217; Major Stepan Tarabalka killed in battle"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_85 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a40e97ec292e\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a40e97ec292e\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-1'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/ghost-of-kyiv-major-stepan-tarabalka-killed-in-battle\/#%E2%80%9C%E2%80%98Ghost_of_Kyiv_Major_Stepan_Tarabalka_killed_in_battle%E2%80%9D\" >&#8220;&#8216;Ghost of Kyiv&#8217; Major Stepan Tarabalka killed in battle&#8221;<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h1><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"%E2%80%9C%E2%80%98Ghost_of_Kyiv_Major_Stepan_Tarabalka_killed_in_battle%E2%80%9D\"><\/span>&#8220;&#8216;Ghost of Kyiv&#8217; Major Stepan Tarabalka killed in battle&#8221;<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h1>\n<div>\n<aside class=\"single__inline-module alignleft\">\n<\/aside>\n<p>The mysterious Ukrainian fighter pilot hailed as the \u201cGhost of Kyiv\u201d after reportedly shooting down dozens of Russian aircraft has been killed in battle, an outlet said Friday.<\/p>\n<p>The death of the much-celebrated enigmatic pilot was <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.thetimes.co.uk\/article\/3bfb0ee6-c7a5-11ec-9dde-f7c3fe539ee7?shareToken=7a9353c86ab4a1a987510195ac5ff17f\">reported by The Times of London<\/a>, which for the first time also publicly identified Major Stepan Tarabalka, a 29-year-old father of one, as the war hero.<\/p>\n<p>Tarabalka was credited with taking out as many as 40 Russian aircraft until he was himself shot down March 13 while battling an \u201coverwhelming\u201d number of enemy forces, the UK paper said.<\/p>\n<p>Tarabalka was posthumously awarded Ukraine\u2019s top medal for bravery in combat, the Order of the Golden Star, with the title Hero of Ukraine, according to his family.<\/p>\n<p>His helmet and goggles \u2014 all that was seen of him when Ukrainian officials promoted his heroism \u2014 are now set to be auctioned in London, sources told the UK Times while confirming Tarabalka\u2019s identity.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignleft size-nypost-small-post\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"231\" height=\"307\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/04\/Stepan-Tarabalka-04.jpg?w=231\" alt=\"The &quot;Ghost of Kyiv&quot; has been identified as Major Stepan Tarabalka.\" class=\"wp-image-22083396\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/04\/Stepan-Tarabalka-04.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=462 462w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/04\/Stepan-Tarabalka-04.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=347 346w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/04\/Stepan-Tarabalka-04.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=231 231w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/04\/Stepan-Tarabalka-04.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=116 115w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/04\/Stepan-Tarabalka-04.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all 1024w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 231px) 100vw, 231px\"\/><figcaption>The \u201cGhost of Kyiv\u201d has been identified as Major Stepan Tarabalka.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>Tarabalka became a mysterious legend when the Ukrainian government credited the then-anonymous pilot with shooting down six Russian jets on the first day of the war.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPeople call him the Ghost of Kyiv. And rightly so,\u201d the official tweet said, saying he had \u201calready become a nightmare for invading Russian aircraft.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Ukraine\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/general\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"3\" title=\"General\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">General<\/a> Staff later tweeted another picture of the ace fighter pilot in the cockpit of his MiG-29 jet with his face covered, captioned, \u201cHello, occupier, I\u2019m coming for your soul!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Many people questioned whether the \u201cGhost\u201d was real, as his identity remained a mystery  \u2014 seemingly even to his grieving family when told of their loved one\u2019s death last month.<\/p>\n<p>His parents, Nahtalia and Evon Tarabalka, were<a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.npr.org\/transcripts\/1088446883\"> interviewed by NPR<\/a> soon after his death \u2014 and they gave no mention of his secret status nor any hint they knew what missions he had been on.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe know he was flying on a mission. And he completed the mission, his task. Then he didn\u2019t return. That\u2019s all the information we have,\u201d his dad told the outlet.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"682\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/04\/stepan-tarabalka-twitter-01.jpeg?w=1024\" alt=\"&quot;Since early childhood, he always dreamed of the sky,&quot; his mother told NPR.\" class=\"wp-image-22083412\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/04\/stepan-tarabalka-twitter-01.jpeg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1535 1536w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/04\/stepan-tarabalka-twitter-01.jpeg?quality=75&amp;strip=all 1024w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/04\/stepan-tarabalka-twitter-01.jpeg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=512 512w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\"\/><figcaption>\u201cSince early childhood, he always dreamed of the sky,\u201d his mother told NPR.<\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\"><a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/social-mediaa\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"1\" title=\"Social Media\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Twitter<\/a>\/@yirmiucderece<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"538\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/04\/Stepan-Tarabalka-plane.jpeg?w=1024\" alt=\"&quot;We know he was flying on a mission,&quot; his parents said of his death.\" class=\"wp-image-22083423\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/04\/Stepan-Tarabalka-plane.jpeg?quality=75&amp;strip=all 1024w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/04\/Stepan-Tarabalka-plane.jpeg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=512 512w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\"\/><figcaption>\u201cWe know he was flying on a mission,\u201d his parents said of his death.<\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\">Twitter\/@intel1osint100<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Tarabalka\u2019s parents detailed how their son\u2019s lifelong dream was to become a fighter pilot while growing up next to a military airfield in the village of Korolivka.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSince early childhood, he always dreamed of the sky, about flying higher than the clouds,\u201d his mother told NPR through a translator.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignright size-nypost-small-post\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"231\" height=\"448\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/04\/stepan-tarabalka-03.jpg?w=231\" alt=\"Tarabalka leaves behind a wife and young son.\" class=\"wp-image-22083433\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/04\/stepan-tarabalka-03.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=462 462w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/04\/stepan-tarabalka-03.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=346 346w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/04\/stepan-tarabalka-03.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=231 231w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/04\/stepan-tarabalka-03.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=115 115w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/04\/stepan-tarabalka-03.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all 1024w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 231px) 100vw, 231px\"\/><figcaption>Tarabalka leaves behind a wife and young son.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>\u201cHe would always watch the paratroopers in their air exercises. And he would run in their direction to try to see where they landed,\u201d Nahtalia said.<\/p>\n<p>His parents said said they were amazed when he made his dream come true, despite having no military connections.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBecoming a pilot, it was his own effort. He did it all himself. I just helped with prayers,\u201d his mother said.<\/p>\n<p>They confirmed that Tarabalka \u2014 who leaves behind a wife, Olenia, and 8-year-old son, Yarik \u2014 was awarded the Order of the Golden Star, with the title Hero of Ukraine. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cOf course, he\u2019d already earned this award when he was with us,\u201d his father told NPR.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBut we wish he could get the honor after the war. We just wish he was still alive.\u201d\n                        <\/p><\/div>\n<blockquote><p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. Follow us on\u00a0<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMLG0nwswvr63Aw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Google News<\/a><\/span>\u00a0too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">For forums sites go to <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/forum.buradabiliyorum.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Forum.BuradaBiliyorum.Com<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/news\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"2\" title=\"News\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">News<\/a> articles, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/news\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">News category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2022\/04\/29\/ghost-of-kyiv-major-stepan-tarabalka-killed-in-battle\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;&#8216;Ghost of Kyiv&#8217; Major Stepan Tarabalka killed in battle&#8221; The mysterious Ukrainian fighter pilot hailed as the \u201cGhost of Kyiv\u201d after reportedly shooting down dozens of Russian aircraft has been killed in battle, an outlet said Friday. The death of the much-celebrated enigmatic pilot was reported by The Times of London, which for the first&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":439417,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/04\/stepan-tarabalka-comp.jpg?quality=75&strip=all&w=1024","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[70897],"tags":[128639,88910,73363,4975,126128],"class_list":["post-439416","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-4-29-22","tag-honors","tag-pilots","tag-russia","tag-ukraine-war"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/439416","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=439416"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/439416\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/439417"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=439416"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=439416"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=439416"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}