You're reading: US to help Ukrainian activists restore Sikorsky’s mansion in Kyiv

The U.S. will cooperate with Ukrainian activists to restore a mansion owned by the famous aviation engineer Igor Sikorsky, a well known landmark on Yaroslaviv Street in Kyiv.

It’s very important that our culture and history be preserved and kept safe. It’s important for our children and generations to come. Igor Sikorsky was a brilliant Ukrainian-American, former U.S. Congressman Jim Slattery said at a briefing after visiting the landmark.

He noted that Sikorsky, who had left Ukraine for the U.S. because of persecution, had constructed and launched production of the first helicopter by 1930.

Not only did he create and lay down the foundation for helicopters, but he also made a huge contribution to the construction of aircraft. In 1942, during in the middle of World War II, his company was the only one to manufacture helicopters. When the Korean War broke out, Sikorsky’s helicopters played a crucial role, as they were the ones to take the wounded from the battlefield. Later, U.S. president Dwight Eisenhower was the first president to use a Sikorsky’s helicopter. In the 60s and 70s, they were used worldwide, thanks to Sikorsky’s genius, the American politician added.

Slattery said that he would facilitate the restoration of Sikorsky museum in every way possible. The former Congressman promised to discuss the matter at the meeting with the U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine, and with Sikorsky’s company in the U.S.

The mansion in question belongs to the Kozatskiy hotel of the Defense Minister of Ukraine. It was rented out to the “Igor Sikorsky Museum of Aeronautics and Aviation” international charitable foundation for 49 years.

In 2013, Kozatskiy hotel filed a lawsuit with the Economic Court of Kyiv to dissolve the abovementioned lease agreement and return the mansion back to the hotel. The court found in favor of the company, however the Kyiv Courts of Appeal overturned that decision, with the Supreme Economic Court of Ukraine agreeing in December 2013.