Milenko Pavlović (
Serbian Cyrillic
The Serbian Cyrillic alphabet ( sr, / , ) is a variation of the Cyrillic script used to write the Serbian language, updated in 1818 by Serbian linguist Vuk Karadžić. It is one of the two alphabets used to write standard modern Serbian, t ...
: Миленко Павловић; 5 October 1959 – 4 May 1999) was a
Yugoslav fighter pilot who fought in the
Kosovo War
The Kosovo War was an armed conflict in Kosovo that started 28 February 1998 and lasted until 11 June 1999. It was fought by the forces of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (i.e. Serbia and Montenegro), which controlled Kosovo before the wa ...
and came to prominence after he was killed during the
NATO bombing of Yugoslavia
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) carried out an aerial bombing campaign against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia during the Kosovo War. The air strikes lasted from 24 March 1999 to 10 June 1999. The bombings continued until an a ...
.
Early life
Pavlović was born to parents Milorad and Radmila Pavlović, in the village of
Gornje Crniljevo on 5 October 1959. He finished the first four grades of primary school in his hometown, and the next four in
Osečina
Osečina ( sr-cyr, Осечина, ) is a town and municipality located in the Kolubara District of western Serbia. As of 2011, the population of the town is 2,730, while population of the municipality is 12,571 inhabitants.
Settlements
Apart f ...
. He finished high school in
Mostar
, settlement_type = City
, image_skyline = Mostar (collage image).jpg
, image_caption = From top, left to right: A panoramic view of the heritage town site and the Neretva river from Lučki Bridge, Koski Mehmed Pasha ...
. Although he initially rejected the possibility, he later decided to become a military pilot.
Death and legacy
On 4 May 1999, a lone Yugoslav
MiG-29 flown by Pavlović attempted to intercept a large
NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...
formation that was returning to base having just bombed
Valjevo
Valjevo (Serbian Cyrillic: Ваљево, ) is a city and the administrative center of the Kolubara District in western Serbia. According to the 2011 census, the administrative area of Valjevo had 90,312 inhabitants, 59,073 of whom were urban dwell ...
(where Pavlović grew up). It was engaged by a pair of USAF F-16CJs from the
78th Fighter Squadron[Yugoslav & Serbian MiG-29s](_blank)
and shot down with an AIM-120, killing Pavlović.
Originally, a younger pilot was intended to scramble the MiG-29 before Pavlović himself pulled the younger pilot out of the cockpit before he would take off, allegedly telling the younger pilot that he 'was not going to die', but that Pavlović himself would.
Streets in
Novi Sad
Novi Sad ( sr-Cyrl, Нови Сад, ; hu, Újvidék, ; german: Neusatz; see below for other names) is the second largest city in Serbia and the capital of the autonomous province of Vojvodina. It is located in the southern portion of the Pan ...
,
Valjevo
Valjevo (Serbian Cyrillic: Ваљево, ) is a city and the administrative center of the Kolubara District in western Serbia. According to the 2011 census, the administrative area of Valjevo had 90,312 inhabitants, 59,073 of whom were urban dwell ...
,
Batajnica
Batajnica ( sr-Cyrl, Батајница, ) is an urban neighborhood of Belgrade, the capital city of Serbia. It is located in the Belgrade municipality of Zemun.
Location and geography
Batajnica is located in the Syrmia region, in the northern ...
,
Osečina
Osečina ( sr-cyr, Осечина, ) is a town and municipality located in the Kolubara District of western Serbia. As of 2011, the population of the town is 2,730, while population of the municipality is 12,571 inhabitants.
Settlements
Apart f ...
and
Gornje Crniljevo are named after him. On 26 June 2019, the
Batajnica Air Base was renamed in his honor.
Personal life
He was married to Slavica and had two sons: Srđan and Nemanja (b. 1990) who is a former
footballer
A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...
.
See also
*
Zoran Radosavljević
References
External links
Valjevo pamti pilota - heroja
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pavlovic, Milenko
1959 births
1999 deaths
People from Osečina
Yugoslav People's Army personnel
Yugoslav military personnel killed in action
Yugoslav aviators
Serbian aviators
Serbian military personnel killed in action
Serbian military personnel of the Kosovo War
Military personnel killed in the Kosovo War
Aviators killed by being shot down
People killed during the NATO bombing of Yugoslavia