On August 8, 1979, "Pakhtakor" defeated "Zarya" from Voroshilovgrad with a score of 3:1. No one could have imagined that this match would be the last for the then "Pakhtakor" lineup.
The next match was scheduled for August 13 against Minsk's "Dynamo." On August 11, near Dniprodzerzhynsk, Ukraine, at an altitude of 8,400 meters in the air, a collision occurred between a Tu-134 flying on the route Tashkent-Gurievo-Donetsk-Minsk and another aircraft of the same type.
As a result of the tragedy, all 178 people on board the two planes perished. Among them was the 17th "Pakhtakor" lineup, which was considered the pride of Uzbek football at that time.
Idgay Tazetdinov (coach)
Born on January 13, 1933, he started his career in the youth team of Tashkent's "Medik." He later played for "Trud." From 1953 to 1955, he represented the colors of Spartak's second team. In 1956, he joined "Pakhtakor." In the "Class B" league, he played 108 matches and scored 21 goals over four years. In 1958, he was appointed captain of the team.
In the "Class A" league, from 1960 to 1963, he played 94 matches and scored 12 goals. In 1964-1965, he was a player-coach in "Politotdel." After managing "Yangier," "Andijan," and "Yangierik," he became the coach of "Pakhtakor" in 1977.
Mikhail An (midfielder)
Born on November 19, 1952, Mikhail, along with his brother Dmitry, was a member of the youth team of Sverdlovsk. In 1968, he was accepted into a sports boarding school in Tashkent. Starting his career in the "police department," the footballer transferred to "Pakhtakor" in 1971.
Mikhail was one of the standout players in the new Uzbek football scene. He quickly bonded with his teammates, possessed a strong and accurate shot. In the top league of the USSR, he appeared in 138 matches, scoring 30 goals. In 1974 and 1978, he ranked third in the list of the top 33 footballers of the USSR.
He captained the Soviet national team at the Youth European Championship in 1976. He played 2 matches for the national team.
Mikhail was injured and was not supposed to participate in the match against Minsk's "Dynamo." However, his teammates convinced him to join them. At 27 years old, Mikhail also became a victim of an airplane crash.
Defender Ashirov (scientist)
Born on January 25, 1955, in Tashkent, Ashirov spent his entire career at "Pakhtakor." He was an indispensable player in the defense line. At 24 years old, Ashirov, who managed to score 5 goals in 149 games, was also on board the plane that suffered that infamous accident.
Ravil Agishev (defender)
Born in 1959 in Bukhara, Ravil had been passionate about football since childhood and began learning the secrets of the game at Bukhara's "Spartak." In 1978, he joined the ranks of "Pakhtakor." That year, Agishev played in 13 matches. The fans warmly welcomed the defender. However, in the tragic year of 1979, Ravil, who had played 14 games, tragically passed away at the age of 20.
Vladimir Fedorov (striker)
Vladimir was born on January 5, 1955, in Ortachirchik District of the Tashkent Region. Since 1972, he started playing for "Pakhtakor." His debut match for the Tashkent team took place against "Zvezda," and his first goal played a decisive role.
In 1974, he secured second place in the list of top forwards of the USSR. On October 18 of the same year, he played his first match as a member of the USSR national team. He entered the field from the substitute bench in a match against Ireland during the European Championship. In total, he played 18 matches for the national team. At the age of 25, he became a victim of an airplane crash.
Konstantin Bakhanov (midfielder)
Born on May 25, 1954, in Tashkent, Bakhanov and his family moved to Moscow after an earthquake in Tashkent in 1966. He declined an offer to join Moscow's "Dynamo" school and was accepted into "Pakhtakor's" second team in 1971. In 1972, he played 2 games in the first league but suffered a serious injury. He didn't play from 1973 to 1975.
In 1976 and 1977, he played 72 matches and scored 17 goals. He competed in the top league in 1978-1979, scoring 7 goals in 42 matches. During this time, he received an offer from Moscow's "CSKA." Bakhanov met a tragic death at the age of 25.
Yuri Zagumennikh (defender)
Born on June 7, 1947, he started his career with Vladivostok's "Luch." In 1970, "Zenit" invited him to join their team. In 1975, he was seriously injured during training and underwent surgery. Unable to play football for a year and a half, Yuri returned to the game in 1977. However, "Zenit" didn't show him a place, so Zagumennikh moved to "Grover." He became a key player in Tashkent's team and was included in the list of the top 55 players in Zenit's history. At the time of the accident, Zagumennikh was 32 years old.
Alexander Korchenov (midfielder)
Born on August 4, 1949, in Kazan, he was invited by Vyacheslav Solovyev to join "Pakhar" in 1972. Korchenov became an indispensable player for the team. He was awarded the captain's armband in 1977. In the top league (1973-1975, 1978-1979), he played 126 matches and scored 3 goals. In the first league (1976-1977), he managed to score 9 goals in 70 matches. Korchenov tragically passed away at the age of 30.
Nikolay Kulikov (defender)
Born on April 25, 1953, in Moscow, he was accepted into the preparatory group of Moscow's "Dynamo" at the age of 12. In 1974, the Khorezm team "Khanka" recruited him. After playing there for 2 seasons, he joined the "Yangier" team in 1976. A year later, "Pakhtakor" acquired the defender. Kulikov appeared in 21 matches for "Pakhtakor" and became a favorite among the fans. Nikolay was 26 years old at the time of the plane crash.
Vladimir Makarov (midfielder)
Born on March 9, 1947, in Stalinabad (now Dushanbe), Tajikistan, Vladimir began playing football at the age of 10. He started his professional career in 1966 with the Dushanbe team "Energetik." In 1974, he transferred to Odessa's "Chernomorets." In his first year, Vladimir scored 13 goals in 30 games, becoming the team's top scorer.
Continuing his strong performance in subsequent seasons, Makarov drew the attention of "Pakhtakor." Upon joining the Tashkent team, he scored 5 goals in the championship in 1978. However, in the 1979 season, 32-year-old Makarov, who had played 14 games, was not destined to play the 15th game scheduled in Minsk.
Sergey Pokatilov (goalkeeper)
Born on December 30, 1950, in Ashgabat, at the age of 18, he was accepted into the "Stroitel" team, where he spent 5 seasons. In 1973, Pokatilov was invited to "Pakhtakor." In his new team, Sergey immediately became the main goalkeeper. However, in 1975, he was sidelined due to an injury. His wound took a long time to heal. Recovering from the injury, Pokatilov traveled to Minsk as the main goalkeeper for the match against "Dynamo." Sergey was 30 years old at that time.
Sergey Pokatilov blocks a shot by Dynamo Kyiv's forward Oleg Blokhin
Viktor Churkin (striker)
Born on January 25, 1952, in Shymkent, Kazakhstan, he played for the "Metallurg" team in Shymkent from 1968 to 1970. From 1971 to 1975, he represented the "SKA" team. In 1976, he joined "Pakhtakor." 27-year-old Churkin was also aboard the crashed plane.
Sirojiddin Bazarov (striker)
Born in 1961 in Narpa district of Samarkand region, he entered the Republican Sports Boarding School in 1972. Two years later, he was called up to the Uzbekistan youth national team. While studying in the 10th grade of the boarding school, he played for the "Pakhtakor" team. As part of the Uzbekistan youth national team, he won a silver medal at the 1978 Spartakiad of Youth of the Former Union.
Sirojiddin was the youngest of the players who died in the plane crash. Many say that on August 10, his 19th birthday, he didn't want to go to Minsk. However, for most of the injured players in the main team, the reason was that Sirojiddin could also take the field. Bazarov, who didn't play a single match in the main lineup, became a victim of the crash.
Shukhrat Eshboev (striker)
Born on February 8, 1959. A product of the Shukhrat Navoi School. In 1978, the player who caught the attention of "Pakhtakor" was accepted into the reserve team. In his first season, he scored 6 goals. In 1979, he was promoted to the main lineup of "Pakhtakor."
In his debut match, Eshboev came on as a substitute for Yuri Zagumennikh and scored a goal within 20 minutes. Head coach Oleg Bazilevich started giving him opportunities in the main team in subsequent games. Shukhrat Eshboev's last match for "Pakhtakor" was against "Zaria." Unfortunately, 20-year-old Eshboev also became a victim of the plane crash.
Vladimir Sobirov (striker)
Born on January 14, 1958, in Bukhara. He studied at the "Pakhtakor" sports school. After playing for the Khorezm team "Khanka" in 1977, Vladimir only began to secure a place in the main lineup of "Pakhtakor" in 1979. Head coach Oleg Bazilevich gave him the opportunity to showcase his skills on the field. Unfortunately, in the same year, 21-year-old Sobirov, like his other teammates, tragically passed away.
In addition to the footballers and the coach, there were doctor Vladimir Chumakov (1932-1979) and administrator Mansur Talibzhanov (1944-1979). They also lost their lives in the plane crash.
Shortly thereafter, players from other clubs were called to Tashkent, and the team continued the season. For three seasons, the team was given the chance to avoid relegation from the Top League. But no one and nothing could replace the entire team that had perished.
Due to this tragic accident, thousands of fans were completely disillusioned with football. It's probably not hard to imagine how difficult it was for the families of the players. Fans who used to attend the matches teared up as they watched the new team play.
Today on August 11, marks the 44th anniversary of the plane crash. Even after all this time, the memory of the "flower growers" remains in the hearts and minds of the fans.
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