Kandagar (2010)

1995. A Russian Il-76 transport plane carrying a cargo of ammunition disguised as humanitarian aid from Istanbul, Turkey, to Bagram, Afghanistan, is forced by an interceptor fighter to land at the airfield in Kandahar, Afghanistan, for inspection. The Russian crew is taken prisoner by the Taliban: the aircraft commander, the co-pilot, the navigator, the flight engineer, and the radio operator. After refusing to teach the Islamists how to fly a transport plane, they are held in a half-ruined house used as a prison. A small courtyard with a well is surrounded by high walls, machine-gun posts, and guard towers. The crew stoically endures the hardships and privations of captivity. All five are firmly convinced that Russia will free its citizens by using diplomatic channels and its influence in the world. But months pass, and apart from occasional visits by diplomats and journalists, nothing changes. Nevertheless, the Islamists allow regular maintenance work to be carried out on the seized plane. After enduring a succession of hardships and humiliations and coming close to death, the crew members realize that their only way to freedom is to escape. The commander agrees to teach Taliban fighters to fly. An experienced military man who took part in combat in the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan carefully studies the airfield’s daily routine: the runway is in good condition, but a minefield lies just beyond its end. The airfield’s defenses consist of a dummy antiaircraft battery with mannequin gunners and crowds of Islamists armed with small arms, while fighter jets sit in hangars nearby. But this is their only chance to escape. During prayers, without arousing the suspicions of the small guard detail, the crew taxis the plane freely and begins its takeoff run. But not all the prisoners are on board: co-pilot Seryoga is missing from the cockpit. Aircraft commander Karpatov aborts the takeoff, contacts the duty officer, and calls for a tug to tow the plane. They have to wait a long time for another attempt: under various pretexts, the Islamists stop allowing the crew to service the plane. Even so, the crew manages to convince them that the landing gear, damaged during the emergency braking, needs to be repaired and that routine maintenance must be done on the expensive aircraft. The commander’s calculation proves correct: once the landing gear has been replaced, it is time for prayers, and the Taliban leave the airfield together, leaving only a few guards behind. While free of maintenance duties, the navigator, flight engineer, and radio operator start a money game with the guards, putting a gold ring at stake. Meanwhile, after starting and warming up the engines, the pilots begin taxiing the plane toward the runway. The guards are successfully neutralized, but the Islamists manage to block the runway. The commander decides to take off from the remaining stretch, risking overrunning onto the minefield. Putting into practice the knowledge and experience he gained in combat, the commander and co-pilot take off and head toward Iran at low altitude. Their captivity lasted 378 days…