Mathias Rust: Information From Answers.com
Rust in a Moscow courtroom
Mathias Rust (born 1968) is a German pilot who, in 1987, at the age of 19, flew from Hamburg to Moscow, eluding the Soviet air defences and landing in Red Square near the Kremlin.
After leaving Hamburg on May 28 Rust refuelled his Cessna 172B at Helsinki-Malmi Airport. He told air traffic control that he was going to Stockholm, but he turned his plane towards the east. Rust disappeared from the Finnish air space near Sipoo. He headed towards the Baltic coastline and turned towards Moscow. By chance, he flew into the Soviet Union on the national border guard's holiday, and the lax security that resulted allowed him to fly into Soviet territory unnoticed. Rust flew straight towards Moscow and landed in Red Square. He was arrested immediately by the Soviet authorities.
Mikhail Gorbachev took advantage of this, replacing the defense and air defense ministers (both of whom were opposed to glasnost and perestroika) with men who supported his policies. More than 2,000 officers (again, most of whom were opposed to Gorbachev's reform) lost their jobs. This move was critical in winning over the previously fiercely conservative and anti-reform military.
Rust's trial started in Moscow on September 2, 1987. He was sentenced to four years in a labour camp for hooliganism, disregard of aviation laws and infringement of the Soviet border. After a prison sentence of 432 days in the Soviet Union, he was returned to West Germany on August 3, 1988.
After effects
After his release, Rust faced a lot of negative media attention in Germany, as a result of which he lost more than 10 kg of weight and developed severe stomach problems.
In 1989, Rust worked for some time in a hospital in Rissen, Germany. After unsuccessful attempts to ask a nurse out for a date, he injured her with a knife, for which he received a four-year prison sentence in 1991. He was, however, released after five months.
In April 1994 Rust suddenly announced that he would return to Russia, visiting an orphanage, for which he had become the patron. He then disappeared for two years. A rumor said he had died in Russia, but it later turned out he had been working as a shoe salesman in Moscow.
Two years later, at the age of 28, and after having travelled all over the world, Rust returned to Germany. According to an interview in 1997, he planned to marry an Indian girl, Geetha, the daughter of a wealthy Indian tea salesman. Rust himself converted to Hinduism, and the marriage was said to be held as a Hindu-ceremony in India. The couple would then move back to Germany. In 2001 Mathias appeared in court on charges he stole a cashmere pullover. The outcome is unknown.
Rust's life today
Rust is now living in Berlin married to his second wife Athena.
Today, a wealthy Japanese businessman owns Rust's aircraft, keeping it in a hangar until its value appreciates.
External links
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