• Turkey shot down a Russian military plane on the Syrian border
• Ankara officials claimed it was in violation of its airspace
Reuters, Nov. 24, 2015 – Turkey has shot down a military plane on the Syrian border, local media reported, citing military sources.
A plane exploded in the air and the fireball fell on a Turkmen mountain on the Syrian side of the border, CNN-Turk and NTV televisions reported.
In video released by Turkey’s state-run Anadolu Agency, two pilots can be seen making a safe landing with their parachutes, though there were unconfirmed fears that one pilot had been taken hostage.
Turkish presidential sources say downed jet was Russian-made SU-24.
Turkish F-16 fighter jets shot down the plane after it violated Turkish air space close to the Syrian border and ignored warnings, a Turkish military official told Reuters.
The aircraft crashed in the Kizildag region of Turkey’s Hatay province and the Turkish military said the plane was warned 10 times in five minutes.
Moscow confirmed that the pilots had parachuted but had no further contact with them.
The office of Ahmet Davutoglu, the Turkish prime minister, said that Ankara would consult NATO and the UN on developments on the Syrian border.
