Milenko Pavlović (

Serbian Cyrillic The Serbian Cyrillic alphabet (, ), also known as the Serbian script, (, ), is a standardized variation of the Cyrillic script used to write the Serbian language. It originated in medieval Serbia and was significantly reformed in the 19th cen ...

: Миленко Павловић; 5 October 1959 – 4 May 1999) was a Yugoslav

fighter pilot A fighter pilot or combat pilot is a Military aviation, military aviator trained to engage in air-to-air combat, Air-to-ground weaponry, air-to-ground combat and sometimes Electronic-warfare aircraft, electronic warfare while in the cockpit of ...

who fought in the

Kosovo War The Kosovo War (; sr-Cyrl-Latn, Косовски рат, Kosovski rat) was an armed conflict in Kosovo that lasted from 28 February 1998 until 11 June 1999. It ...

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 Serbia and Montenegro, Federal Republic of Yugoslavia during the Kosovo War. The air strikes lasted from 24 March 1999 to 10 June 1999. The bombing ...

Early life

Pavlović was born to parents Milorad and Radmila Pavlović, in the village of

Gornje Crniljevo Gornje Crniljevo is a village located in Osečina Municipality, Kolubara District, Serbia , image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg , national_motto = , image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg , national_anthem ...

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 2022, the population of the town is 2,456, while population of the municipality is 9,951 inhabitants. Settlements Apart fro ...

. He finished high school in

Mostar Mostar () is a city and the administrative centre of Herzegovina-Neretva Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the historical capital of Herzegovina. Mostar is situated on the Neretva Riv ...

. 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 The Mikoyan MiG-29 (; NATO reporting name: Fulcrum) is a twinjet, twin-engine fighter aircraft designed in the Soviet Union. Developed by the Mikoyan design bureau as an air superiority fighter during the 1970s, the MiG-29, along with the large ...

flown by Pavlović attempted to intercept a large

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO ; , OTAN), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental Transnationalism, transnational military alliance of 32 Member states of NATO, member s ...

formation that was returning to base having just bombed

Valjevo Valjevo (Serbian Cyrillic: Ваљево, ) is a List of cities in Serbia, city and the administrative center of the Kolubara District in western Serbia. According to the 2022 census, the city itself has a population of 56,145 while the city admini ...

(where Pavlović grew up). It was engaged by a pair of USAF F-16CJs from the 78th Fighter Squadron 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, ; #Name, see below for other names) is the List of cities in Serbia, second largest city in Serbia and the capital of the autonomous province of Vojvodina. It is located in the southern portion of the Pannoni ...

Batajnica Batajnica ( sr-Cyrl, Батајница, ) is an List of Belgrade neighborhoods, 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 ...

and

are named after him. On 26 June 2019, the

Batajnica Air Base The Colonel-pilot Milenko Pavlović Air Base (), commonly known as Batajnica Air Base () is the main military air base of Serbia. It is located between Batajnica and Nova Pazova, about 25 km northwest from the center of Belgrade, Serbia. Histo ...

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 lea ...

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 Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 1999 Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in Serbia

Early life

Death and legacy

Personal life

See also

References

External links