In response to Michael Lambert's letter "An Eyewitness to Moscow's Cold-Heartedness" (July 9).





Editor:


I was a student in Moscow from 1977 to 1983 and, even at that time, it was common to see a drunken man lying on a pathway or standing in the middle of the road without attracting any attention or help from people passing by. Many people even die this way, especially during cold winter season.


This year, an incident happened to me on July 12 at 4:15 P.M. in the city center during broad daylight, which shows the height of "Moscow's Cold-Heartedness." I was walking along Tverskaya-Yamskaya Ulitsa a block away from Triumfalnaya Square, when suddenly a group of five to seven gypsy boys, aged six to 20, surrounded me and demanded money. When I refused, the two strongest boys caught hold of me and the rest started searching my pockets and took away my wallet. I managed to release myself and grabbed the wallet back, but then they started beating me.


I fell down and shouted "Pomogite, pomogite!" ("Help, help!"), but they continued beating and kicking me. Many people passed by but nobody even stopped. Finally the boys left. With great difficulty, I got up and walked to the traffic police post just 100 meters away and explained the whole situation to two policemen standing there. The policemen said that they had already phoned the police station and the police would come at any moment, as a similar incident had happened just 10 minutes before to two tourists.


These victims were an elderly couple, about 70 years old, and probably French. They did not speak Russian, but the woman knew a little English. She told me that near the Mayakovskaya metro station, the gypsy boys had surrounded her husband and started searching his pockets.


She shouted for help, but nobody even bothered to stop. These boys beat the old man and slowly walked away looking for their next victim, who happened to be me. Together with this couple, I stood near traffic police picket for half an hour waiting for the police, but they did not show.


I insisted to the traffic policemen that something be done, but they did not care. They said they were busy controlling the traffic and had already phoned the police station. The French couple stayed there, afraid to walk away. I finally left feeling disgusted. The gypsy boys were standing just 100 meters away from us.


This bunch of gypsy boys is very daring and knows very well that nobody -- even the police -- will stop them from mugging foreigners. They hang around the whole length of Tverskaya Ulitsa (especially in the areas surrounding Pushkin Square and Triumfalnaya Square), wait for helpless foreigner tourists, and then mug them even in broad daylight.


Rajiv Dhawa


Moscow


CSA Crew Acted Correctly


In response to "Czech Jet Crashes Into Bulldozer on Runway" (July 22).





Editor:


I would like to point out that your article contains a large number of inaccuracies that reflect badly on our company.


1) Lynn Konoczuk, a passenger on the flight, spoke about the way in which the evacuation of passengers was handled after the collision. What she says is her personal opinion. In contrast, however, I can say that the commander and crew of the aircraft did everything according to instructions.


After the aircraft comes to a stop and the engines are turned off, the commander gives the go-ahead to prepare the passengers for evacuation. As soon as this command is given, the stewardesses open the emergency hatches and prepare the inflatable slides. I repeat: They prepare the slides. Since the commander and crew saw that a firetruck and a gangway were already approaching the plane, it was decided not to give the order to inflate the slides.


The evacuation of the passengers proceeded using an ordinary gangway, without any complications, which confirms the correctness of the commander's decision.


2) Your article contained information from Mr. Danilyuk, the director of Sheremetyevo's police force, which must also be taken purely as his personal opinion, inasmuch as he is not competent in this area. It was unprofessional of him to blame the aircraft's crew. Only the aviation inspectorate is competent to give reliable information concerning such incidents.


At about 3:00 P.M. on Thursday July 21, your correspondent Adam Tanner called the inspector who was investigating this incident. I was also present in the room since a preliminary discussion of the event was being held. The inspector told your correspondent the following: "I cannot tell you anything concrete at this time, since the investigation is still underway."


We do not wish to preempt the full report of the investigation, but we are confident that the CSA crew will be found to have committed no violations of aviation standards.


In conclusion, I would like to take advantage of this opportunity to express our gratitude to the technical services of the Sheremetyevo-2 airport for their timely and effective work and for their highly professional resolution of the difficulties presented by this incident.


Peter Kruty


CIS Regional Director


CSA Airlines