Gennady Danilenko

'Gennady Mikhailovich Danilenko The middle of three children, he spent his early life in the town of Bataysk, where his father worked as a bricklayer. He studied law at Southern Federal University, graduating in 1977 with honors. Following college, he went back to Bataysk and worked as an attorney for two years. In 1979, he attended the Institute of State and Law. He was a member of the Executive Committee of the Russian Association of International Law and of the editorial board of the Russian Yearbook of International Law.

Danilenko was a writer, authoring and co-authoring several books on international law, international maritime law, and space law. His first book, Custom in International Law'', was published in Moscow in 1988. He taught as an adjunct at the University of Michigan and was also a consultant. During his flight, one of the balloons ruptured in his stomach while another was lodged in his esophagus. Fearing he had a heart attack, the plane was diverted to Goose Bay, Newfoundland and Labrador, where he was to receive emergency surgery. While performing surgery, the surgeons found twelve balloons filled with cocaine, six of which burst in his stomach. He fell into a coma and died on April 18.