Rudolf Perešin is a Homeland War hero, born on March 25th 1958 in Jakšinec, Gornja Stubica. He made his mark when, at the beginning of the war, on October 25th 1991, he made a historic flight with a MIG-21 plane of the former Yougoslav Army to land in Kalgenfurt, Austria. On that occasion, he said the famous phrase: "I am Croat and cannot shoot at my people"! – thus raising interest and emphaty of the world audience for the suffering of the Croatian people. Upon his return to Croatia, he offered his services to the Croatian Army and its Air Force, and became its commander. His plane was shot down on May 2nd 1995 during the military operation Flash. After two and a half years of nothing being known about his fate, the Serbian side eventually delivered his remains on August 4th 1997. He is buried at the Mirogoj graveyard in Zagreb, in the Alley of the Croatian Veterans of the Homeland War.
On June 24th 2004, the "Rudolf Perešin" memorial park was inaugurated in Gornja Stubica, with a statue of the pilot and a preserved MIG-21 which was brought from the overhaul facility in Velika Gorica.
Every year, the event "Meetings for Rudi"takes place in honour of Rudolf Perešin. The event has long outgrown the local character, becoming a major cultural and social event of the north-west part of Croatia, and also the largest and most visited flying show in all of Croatia.
