Smolensk - NATO sources warned years ago that their designated classification names for former Eastern Bloc military craft might be blamed one day for tragedy.
This weekend's Polish air disaster involved a former Soviet Tupolev Tu-154 whose official NATO reporting code is 'Careless' - "as in accident waiting to happen" according to air crash investigative cryptologists' comments today.
For some unexplained reason NATO's reporting names for Soviet designation craft all begin with the letter C.
Seven Tupolevs, including doomed supersonic Concorde rival Tupolev Tu-144 (NATO reporting name: "Clitoris"), have been given the C word moniker.
The Tupolev Tu-70, a mass-production prototype subsequently sold to Irish Cunnilingus Airlines, reports under 'Carnal'.
The Tu-104 is 'Cordite', the Tu-114 'Cherie', the Tu-124 is 'Clinton', the Tu-134 is 'Condoleezza' and the Tu-144 is 'Cheryl'.
The entire Tu range may now be grounded following Saturday's Smolensk tragedy.
