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General Alexander Radek (simply known as General Radek) is a major antagonist of the 1997 film Air Force One.
Despite not speaking in the entire film, he was portrayed by Jürgen Prochnow.
Biography
Alexander Radek was the military dictator of Kazakhstan, a ruthless Russian warlord and former Soviet officer who wanted to use his nuclear arsenal to retake Russia and create a new Soviet Union (and possibly take over the world). One of his most loyal supporters was Ivan Korshunov. During his reign, over 200,000 civilians were murdered by his troops.
A joint Russian-American military ops team broke into Radek's palace one night, killed all of his guards and captured him. He was flown to Russia by helicopter where he stood trial for crimes against humanity, and was eventually convicted and imprisoned. The masterminds behind his capture were American President Marshall and Russian President Petrov.
Radek's surviving men, however, were determined to see him free and his dream of a new Soviet Russia brought to life. Led by the fanatically loyal Korshunov, several of them hijacked Air Force One and demanded the General's release. Initially, their demands were refused (Partly because, at a dinner function mere hours before the hijacking, Marshall gave a televised and well-received speech vowing that America will never negotiate with terrorists), but Korshunov soon had Marshall himself captive, and after he threatened the President's wife and daughter, Marshall finally capitulated and asked Petrov to release Radek.
Petrov agreed, even though he knew it would mean the end of his presidency and possibly the end of a free and democratic Russia, considering how many loyal troops Radek still had at his beck and call, to say nothing of his nuclear arsenal. But Marshall had only asked Petrov to release the General to buy time. While Radek's henchmen celebrated, the American President cut his bonds and freed himself, killing Korshunov and all his other men.
Marshall called Petrov and told him to cancel Radek's release. At the prison, Radek was walking out the front gate in full Soviet military uniform to a waiting helicopter, when suddenly a spotlight fell on him. The Russian prison guards yelled for him to stop. Deciding to make a run of for it, he ran for the copter, only to be shot in the back by the guards. He died standing up mere inches from the open helicopter door. His loyal men even tried to grab his uniform sleeves and pull him inside as he was falling over backwards, but lost their grips.
Though Radek, Korshunov and his men are dead, a commanding base (whose loyalties are to Radek) sends in six MiGs to intercept and attack Air Force One in revenge for the oppressive dictator's death, but they failed, when six F-15s intervenes after losing three MiGs in the process, and they surrender the base to Petrov.
Trivia
- The film credits give his first name as Alexander, however both the movie dialogue and the film's novelization call him Ivan.
- He shares the name Ivan with Ivan Korshunov.