Turkey: Army warned Russian fighter jet 10 times before shoot-down
An image grab shows a burning Russian fighter jet coming down after being shot down near the Turkish-Syrian border on November 24, 2015. Russian has called the shoot-down a very serious incident as Turkish army says it warned the fighter jet ten times before firing. PHOTO | AFP
What you need to know:
The Turkish army said the plane was shot down by two F-16s jets after violating Turkish airspace 10 times within a five-minute period.
With a major diplomatic crisis looming between two states on opposing sides in the Syria conflict, Russia insisted the jet was inside Syrian airspace and said the downing was a very serious incident.
Russia confirmed that one of its planes had been downed at an altitude of 6,000 metres but said it appeared to have been shot from the ground.
ANKARA, Tuesday
Nato member Turkey shot down a Russian fighter jet, threatening a major spike in tensions between two key protagonists in the four-year Syria civil war.
The Turkish army said the plane was shot down by two F-16s jets after violating Turkish airspace 10 times within a five-minute period.
With a major diplomatic crisis looming between two states on opposing sides in the Syria conflict, Russia insisted the jet was inside Syrian airspace and said the downing was a very serious incident.
Turkish media said one pilot was captured by rebel forces in Syria after they ejected while Syrian opposition said one died while the other was missing.
The jet exploded in mid-air, crashing in a fireball onto a mountain on the Syrian side of the border, television pictures showed.
MILITARY CRISIS
The presence of aircraft from Russia, the US, France, Turkey and a clutch of Gulf states in Syrian skies had long raised fears of an incident that could escalate into a major diplomatic and military crisis.
“A Russian Su-24 plane was downed under the rules of engagement because it violated Turkish airspace despite warnings,” the presidency said.
Turkey has summoned the Russian envoy to Ankara over the incident, which comes on the eve of a visit by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
Russia confirmed that one of its planes had been downed at an altitude of 6,000 metres but said it appeared to have been shot from the ground.
“Presumably as a result of firing from the ground, an Su-24 plane of the Russian forces crashed in the Syrian Arab Republic,” Russian news agencies quoted the defence ministry as saying.
“It is a very serious incident,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.
Turkey’s Dogan news agency broadcast footage of what it said were Russian helicopters flying over Syrian territory in an apparent search for the lost men.
Russian jets are waging a bombing campaign against targets in northern Syria.
