Ghost of Kyiv' wasn't killed in battle as reported, Ukrainian military says

By Edward Era Barbacena

The "Ghost of Kyiv" is more myth than man.

A report that the Ukrainian fighter pilot who flew into people's hearts as a modern Red Baron flying a MiG-29 jet and shooting Russian rivals out of the sky was identified and killed in Battle can't be true because he never existed, according to Ukrainian Air Force officials.

"Ghost of Kyiv is a superhero-legend whose character was created by Ukrainians!" the Ukrainian military said on Saturday. "This is rather a collective image of the pilots of the 40th Tactical Aviation Brigade defending the sky of the capital. Which suddenly appear where they are not expected."

The mysterious ace emerged early in Russia's war on Ukraine, with the story that the pilot shot down six Russian jets. Fast-forward more than two months into the conflict, and Major Stepan Tarabalka, a 29-year-old father of one, was identified as the Ghost of Kyiv, killed in battle after taking out as many as 40 Russian aircraft, the Times of London reported.

Tarabalka was a "hero," but he was "NOT 'Ghost of Kyiv' and he did NOT hit 40 planes," Ukraine's Air Force insisted. He was "heroically killed in an air battle with the dominant forces of the Russian occupiers," the military branch said on Facebook, adding that he died on March 13.

The Times of London, which still reports Ukrainian sources claiming he was real, now says it understood that Tarabalka inspired the legend of the Ghost of Kyiv even if it wasn't him exactly.

“The Ghost of Kyiv is alive and embodies a collective image of the highly qualified pilots of the tactical aviation brigade successfully defending Kyiv and the surrounding region," said Ukrainian Air Force spokesman Yuriy Ignat.

Tarabalka was posthumously awarded the Order of the Golden Star, the highest military honor, and given the title Hero of Ukraine.