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Finnish airliner Kaleva, a Junkers 52 passenger plane

Author page for
historical Airliner Down action thrillers
by

Kalervo Mikkonen

First historical Airliner Down thriller

Book cover of Kaleva down written by Kalervo Mikkonen
Icon of the Junkers 52 passanger plane

Kaleva Down: Action-packed, aviation-themed, historical Cold War, mystery thriller

A plane was shot down in 1940. Forty-four years later, in Cold War Europe, trying to find the truth is still perilous.


Finnish Veli-Matti ‘Vellu’ Jokinen has spent years trying to uncover the mystery for why Soviet war planes shot down the civilian airliner Kaleva. He has an intriguing new lead to pursue. Unfortunately, Mossad, MI6, and the KGB are all equally interested.

 

In 1984 during a trip to Hong Kong, a chance encounter with a British RAF fighter pilot ‘Rog’ and a seductive Mossad agent ‘Hannah’ traps the men into a hazardous race between the competing intelligence agencies.


The two men travel to Soviet Estonia to follow Vellu’s lead, but their high stakes adventure turns into a nightmare. The men are arrested and thrown into the notorious Patarei prison in Tallinn.


What happens to the ill-fated men? Will the mystery of the Kaleva shootdown ever be solved?


What secret was worth sending a planeload of passengers and crew to their deaths in 1940? What is the secret worth now?


The readers of Nelson DeMille’s The Cuban Affair, Kevin Brophy’s The Berlin Crossing and Richard Falkirk’s The Chill Factor, as well as anyone interested in Cold War historical thrillers, will find Kaleva Down a gripping read, firmly rooted in a real, tragic event.


If you enjoy:​

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  • Action-packed adventure and suspense

  • Aviation-themed thrillers

  • Cold War era historical fiction

  • Historical mysteries with political twists

  • A memory lane to the 1980’s 


Then Kaleva Down is your cup of tea!

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Note: Kaleva Down is available on different Amazon websites. When buying the paperback, depending on where you are, for lowest shipping and handling costs as well as fastest delivery, shop at your local Amazon (amazon.co.uk, amazon.de, amazon.se, ...). There is no Amazon website for Finland, but amazon.de delivers to Finland and is the best option for Finnish readers. 

kalevadown

Reviews

Author

Kalervo Mikkonen is the author of Airliner Down book serie

Of Anglo-Finnish roots, Kalervo Mikkonen carried out his military service during the Cold War, before embarking on a career, which included both aviation and engineering. He is well travelled, having visited many (figuratively speaking) corners of the globe both for work and recreation.

He has a keen interest in aviation and Cold War history. He likes to travel and; when not hiking or riding an ageing motorcycle, he may be spotted visiting museums – aeronautical and otherwise – or enjoying a good beer. Kaleva Down is Kalervo Mikkonen’s first historical Airliner Down thriller.

Reviews
Author

"The 1940 Kaleva plane incident at the core, a female James Bond activated, and a British and Finnish caught in the crossfire", 5-star Reedsy Discovery review

By founding the book on a true historical event, Kalervo makes the book a must-read. By giving the readers well-fleshed characters, notably Vellu, Roger and Hannah again, Kalervo makes the book memorable. In addition, the plot kicks off intriguingly; the middle gets intense, and the ending is equally top-notch.
...
The Russians won’t stop, and the Mossad is also closing in, keen on exposing the truth. In the midst of all this, two young men, Vellu and Roger, are caught in a dangerous race worth telling their grandchildren. That's, if they survived.

News and Notes

News & Notes

Last flight
of Kaleva

This video is a good 'executive summary' of the Kaleva shootdown; here's the video's description in YouTube:

 

On 14.6.1940 Soviet planes shot down the Finnish airliner Kaleva, a Junkers 52 passenger plane flying from Tallinn/Estonia to Helsinki/Finland.

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Soviet Union was just about to invade Estonia, and the Finnish passenger plane was unfortunate to stumble right into middle of the Soviet invasion forces. All passengers and crew members died.

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This video is accurate historical reproduction of the event. 

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Keywords: Junkers 52, Ju-52, OH-ALL, Kaleva, invasion of Estonia, Virtuaalilentajat, Finnish Virtual Pilots Association

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Virtuaalilentajat -  Finnish Virtual Pilots
Editor: Jouni "Vaijy" Vartio

Contact

Email: author.k.mikkonen[@]gmail.com

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