“A plane can crash, a ship can sink” – Did you know Hungarian Communist leader Kádár was terrified of travelling?
János Kádár, First Secretary of the Hungarian Socialist Workers’ Party, ruled Hungary for over three decades, yet he never managed to overcome one thing: his fear of travelling. He dreaded flying, became ill on boats, and never felt safe in a car. There was only one mode of transport he trusted unconditionally – the train.
The railway enthusiast and the legend of the “Silver Arrow”
Kádár often repeated: “A plane can crash, a ship can sink, but the train always stays on track.” He took this belief so seriously that he had a private train built for himself. The Silver Arrow (Ezüstnyíl), completed in 1969 by the Rába Hungarian Wagon and Machine Factory, represented the technological peak of the era – and served as Kádár’s moving empire.
From the outside, the train appeared modest, earning the nickname “grey donkey” among railway workers. Inside, however, it offered full luxury: a telephone, world-band radio, air conditioning, shower, kitchen, and even rooms for chess and cards. The conference room seated sixteen people, while the sleeping cabin provided a comfortable retreat for Hungary’s leader, attended by his personal staff. According to Blikk, the train could reach speeds of up to 120 km/h and covered as many as 7,000 kilometres per year, mainly across Central and Eastern Europe.
Details of these journeys were strictly classified. A pilot carriage always preceded the train to inspect the track and prevent possible attacks. Railway crossings were closed in advance, and before each departure, the train driver – referred to as the “pilot” – would report the estimated arrival time and weather conditions.
Watch a video of how the Silver Arrow looks today:
Fear of flying and a near-tragedy
Kádár felt particularly unwell in the air. Changes in air pressure caused him ear pain, and he would only board a plane if accompanied by Sándor Nagyváthy, an aeronautical engineer from Malév, the Hungarian national airline. Nagyváthy was the only person Kádár trusted implicitly – and for good reason.
During one flight aboard a Tu-134 carrying top party officials, the plane began to descend dangerously three times. Nagyváthy noticed a heating system failure near the wings just in time and managed to fix the problem. After this incident, Kádár became even more convinced that rail travel was the only truly safe option.
In 1987, when he was required to travel to China, the journey became a genuine nightmare for him. The long flight with several transfers was barely tolerable – only Nagyváthy’s presence helped him endure it.
Seasickness and diplomatic voyages
Kádár did not enjoy travelling by sea either. In 1960, while heading to New York for the UN General Assembly aboard the Soviet ocean liner Baltika, he suffered severe seasickness. Protests by sailors, American dockworkers, and Hungarian émigrés only made the trip more unpleasant.
However, back home, boating became a useful tool for diplomacy. Kádár used Artúr, a yacht once owned by Miklós Horthy, to show foreign guests the panorama of Budapest. He also enjoyed boating on Lake Balaton, especially when setting off from his holiday residence in Aliga. His own small boat, Hullám (“Wave”), was equipped with a 130-horsepower engine, radar, and space for five people – perfect for fishing trips with his wife, as Index reported.
Bulletproof Mercedes and breaking with Soviet cars
Although Kádár was never a car enthusiast, he usually travelled to Aliga in his black Mercedes W116. The car’s doors were reinforced with lead inserts, making it bulletproof. This choice in the early 1970s marked a clear break from the era of Soviet ZIL-111 limousines, still favoured by many party elites.
Earlier, Kádár had inherited a rare convertible Chaika (GAZ-13V) from Nikita Khrushchev – one of only fifteen ever made. Interestingly, the other known model belonged to Yuri Gagarin; after his death, that car also ended up in Kádár’s possession. Following the political changes of 1989, both vehicles were taken to the United States.