Turkish F-16s Shoot Down Russian Su-24 Warplane Near Syria Border

Tyler Durden's picture

Moments ago a big black geopolitical swan landed when newswires lit up with headlines that a Turkish F-16 shot down what was initially said to be an unidentified warplane near the Syrian border after it violated Turkey’s airspace on Tuesday, a Turkish military official said, but the nationality of the downed aircraft was not immediately clear.

The Russian jet crashed in the mountainous Jabal Turkmen area of Latakia, where air strikes and fighting between rebels and Syrian government forces were reported earlier on Tuesday.

According to Reuters, Turkish F16s warned the jet repeatedly over the airspace violations before shooting it down.

A Russian Su024 aircraft goes down in Kizildag region of Turkey’s
Hatay province, close to the Syrian border, on November 24, 2015

 

Footage from private broadcaster Haberturk TV showed a warplane going down in flames in a woodland area, a long plume of smoke trailing behind it. The plane went down in area known by Turks as “Turkmen Mountain” in northern Syria near the Turkish border, Haberturk said.

 

Minutes later, the Turkish Lira sank like a rock while risk assets across Europe tumbled when the Turkish presidency confirmed that, as many had expected, the jet was a Russian fighter jet, which the Russian Defense Ministry later said was a Su-24. The Su-24 jet was warned after violating Turkish airspace and was then downed in line with Turkey’s rules of engagement, Anadolu says, citing officials at the presidency.

According to Todays’ Szaman, in a statement, the Turkish military said a plane of unknown origin was shot down after it violated the Turkish airspace despite repeated warnings. The aircraft was warned 10 times in 5 minutes, the military said.

It said two Turkish F-16s were involved in the shooting down of the jet.

However, while moments ago the Russian defense ministry confirmed that the shot down plane was indeed one of its own in what will be deemed a clear act of aggression by a NATO-member country against Russia, the Russian defense ministry said it could prove the aircraft was over Syria for the entire flight.

The ministry added that the pilots ejected, according to preliminary info, and that Russia trying to determine their fates, Interfax reports.  Interfax also adds that the plane was probably downed by fire from ground, and that it had been flying at flying at an altitude of 6,000 meters.

Meanwhile, Turkish media reported that either one or both of the pilots may have been captured by Turkmen forces located in the region.

  • TURKMEN FORCES CAPTURE 2 PILOTS OF DOWNED RUSSIAN JET: AHABER

Although there is confusion whether both or just one pilot was captured

  • SYRIA TURKMEN FORCES SAY 1 PILOT OF DOWNED PLANE CAPTURED: AA

Especially with a YouTube video spread showing what is alleged to be one of the pilots dead

More:

A CNN Türk reporter in Yaylada? said a helicopter was hovering over the scene of the crash, apparently to pick up the pilots, but that opposition fighters were preventing it. The reporter later said one of the pilots was at the hands of Turkmen opposition fighters.

 

Prime Minister Davuto?lu has been briefed by the General Staff and ordered the Turkish Foreign Ministry to contact NATO, UN and relevant countries about the downed plane.

This huge escalation in the Syrian proxy war, one where a NATO country has openly attacked a non-NATO country (if Russia is correct and it did not violate Turkish airspace), comes after Turkey called this week for a U.N. Security Council meeting to discuss attacks on Turkmens in neighboring Syria, and last week Ankara summoned the Russian ambassador to protest the bombing of their villages.

Ankara has traditionally expressed solidarity with Syrian Turkmens, who are Syrians of Turkish descent.

We await a formal reaction by Russia, one which we doubt will be calm, cool and collected and may in fact see the Turkish aggression as an act of war if indeed the Russian Su never entered Turkish territory.

Here is the official statement by Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov via Sputnik:

“So far, we have not heard the reason for the crash of our attack aircraft from the Defense Ministry. We know for sure that the aircraft was in Syrian airspace, over the territory of Syria,” Peskov said, noting that the ministry’s first statement on the crash was based on preliminary information.

 

It would be wrong to make some kind of assumptions right now, to make any statements until we have the complete picture. Therefore, we just have to be patient. This is a very serious incident, but again, it is impossible to say anything without complete information,” he added.

 

It can be assumed that the president… will touch upon this issue during the talk with the king, and that there will be some kind of a reaction,” Peskov told reporters when asked whether Putin would make a statement on the matter.

Elsewhere, the Turkish army released what it claims is a radar path analysis of the downed jet’s flight path:

At first blush it is not clear how the airspace violating jet could have received “10 warnings” in the several seconds it took to cross what the Turks claim was the offending Turkish territory, especially since the plane ultimately crashed in Syrian territory.

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21 Comments
card802
card802
November 24, 2015 6:58 am

Oh boy…..

IndenturedServant
IndenturedServant
November 24, 2015 7:05 am

Well there ya go!

Anonymous
Anonymous
November 24, 2015 7:48 am

Turkey shoots down a Russian plane that is fighting ISIS.

That leaves little doubt as to which side Turkey is on.

Now the rest of NATO and Obama’s US can show their faces to the world as well with their responses. (Actually, I think there is already little doubt that the US is on ISIS side among the thinking art of the population).

Hopefully Putin will do the right thing and Punish Turkey severely for their action, if not he will start looking impotent and end up in the position of having to make a major military action to avoid being pushed from the scene.

Billy
Billy
November 24, 2015 7:51 am
Peaceout
Peaceout
November 24, 2015 8:54 am

Well we knew this day was coming it was just a matter of time. Know we will find out how bad all the players want to play ball.

destroyerofsolesnikesales
destroyerofsolesnikesales
November 24, 2015 9:05 am

Thats great, its starts with an earth quake, birds snakes an areoplane, and lenny bruce is not afraid. Because hes already dead. Locked in a trunk in my basement. I thought paris could be an archduke moment. They need to disolve nato like asap.

Dutchman
Dutchman
November 24, 2015 10:03 am

This is not going to go well.

Francis Marion
Francis Marion
November 24, 2015 10:25 am

It’s a fucked up planet – the corporate Marxists (30 year ago who’d have thunk such a thing would come to exist?) and their media lapdogs are flailing about like a rabid dog. Shit is going to get ugly everywhere pretty soon.

On a more positive note the Canadian government says it will not allow ‘unaccompanied males’ from Syria in as refugees – women, children and families only. That’s encouraging given the demographic make up of the bombings in Paris….. /sarc

overthecliff
overthecliff
November 24, 2015 10:27 am

To many dominoes sitting on the edge of the table. I can’t think of anything more wasteful than western men being killed for Turkey.

Stucky
Stucky
November 24, 2015 10:34 am

Even if the Russian fighter was over Turkish airspace — a very big if at the moment — what about INTENT??

Did the Turks actually believe the Russian jet intended to bomb Turkey??? Is this the accepted “norm” regarding air space — that the moment you cross this imaginary air border one is justified in shooting it down … regardless of consequences, even if it was a mistake?

The more I think about it the more I am convinced this was a deliberate act of war by Turkey and, again, approved or even directed by Amerika. Somebody wants a hot war really really bad.

Stucky
Stucky
November 24, 2015 10:45 am

Turkish blogger warned Erdogan wanted to shoot down a Russian plane to provoke a conflict with Russia

According to a popular Turkish blogger this should help him in his election campaign and save him from possible defeat and the end of his political career

Turkey’s President Erdogan is planning to shoot down Russian planes in Syria, to put relations between Russia and Turkey to the brink of war. This should help him in his election campaign and save him from possible defeat and the end of his political career. A Turkish blogger, known under the name Fuat Avni came out with this troubling warning. He has been active for several years, and his denunciations of government’s plans often turn out to be true.

Our sources in Turkey believe that Erdogan out of a well-founded fear of defeat is ready to plunge his country into a state of war hysteria, shooting down Russian planes in the skies of Syria under the pretext that they violated the Turkish airspace.

Erdogan has pushed himself into a corner with his position on Syria. His planes, under the pretext of fighting ISIS are bombing Kurdish villages, causing active resistance of both the Syrian and Turkish Kurds.

“The Turkish people are dissatisfied with Erdogan’s policy on Syria. The presence of masses of armed militants and large costs of supporting refugees had undermined the fragile welfare of the Turks. Many support Russian presence in Syria and ending the nightmare with the militants. They hope that Russia, having received this storm warning, will be able to avoid being drawn into conflict with Turkey, and at the same time will continue the good work on the restoration of the territorial integrity and constitutional order in Syria,” – said the source.

How should we react to this warning? Our sources and Fuat Avni are in opposition to Erdogan. Erdogan is in a really difficult position. He is being pressured by the Americans, Qatar and Saudi Arabia, who watch with horror how created and funded by them armed militias are pushed back from Aleppo under the onslaught of the Syrian army.

EXPERT OPINION

Pavel SHLYKOV, associate professor at the Department of History of Near and Middle East, Institute of Asian and African studies:

“We have too multifaceted cooperation to severe it all”

– Pavel Vyacheslavovich, how real is this scenario?

– The tensions are rising before the elections, but the target of these statements is domestic audience. And certainly not the Russian business and the elite. At stake is not only the “Turkish stream”, the tourist industry, but other powerful projects – including Turkish projects in Russia. We have too multifaceted cooperation in order to severe it all with some gamble. Foreign policy of Turkey is defined by business interests and Erdogan participated in the creation of this model of foreign policy.

– But Turkey is still a NATO member. So in the case of a hypothetical conflict other NATO members will be forced to join?

– One thing is rhetoric, another – military conflict. NATO is not eager to go to war with Russia. And it doesn’t support the military adventures of Ankara – enough to recall the Turkish invasion of Northern Cyprus in 1974.

.
http://fortruss.blogspot.com/2015/11/turkish-blogger-warned-erdogan-wanted.html

Capn Mike
Capn Mike
November 24, 2015 10:50 am

@Stuck:
Absolutely.
I think Ron Paul in 2012 was our last, best, hope.
Pardon me while I stock the shelter.

Lysander
Lysander
November 24, 2015 11:44 am

Putin has been playing as much as possible by the book. He supported the Eastern Ukraine ‘rebels’ without using his military. He made a ballsy move going right into the Crimea, but it was after a vote and the Russians needed that badly for strategic reasons.

Putin made his case in front of the UN for getting involved with helping Assad and even gave notice to ‘Murika! that his planes were going to commence bombing, even though it was only one hour notice.

So Putin has been crossing his T’s and dotting his I’s pretty well. He has to legitimize what he’s doing to the Russian people and to his allies while showing that he’s the epitome of diplomatic courtesy and restraint.

As chips in this poker game, he has the downing of the Russian airliner and the shootdown of the Russian warplane to show that Russia is not the aggressor and is, in fact, a victim.

This is important in the build up to war. Even Hitler pulled a FF on the Polish Border simulating a Polish attack before he launched his panzers. Murika! had the Gulf of Tonkin bullshit before Vietnam, and the War On Terror had 9/11.

I think that Putin will go before the UN with this Turkish attack and complain. That’s all. But the next incident will trigger the war. It might be an attack on a Russian ship, their airbase in Syria, or the shootdown of a Russian bomber. Whatever happens, Putin will have the ‘street creds’ to play the victim and his response will be presented by him as a defense, not a unprovoked aggression.

Shit’s gettin’ good, homies!

Billy
Billy
November 24, 2015 12:22 pm

Couldn’t take Da N00ze anymore… turned that shit off and put on The Dubliners…. maybe some Norwegian fiddle music later, maybe Elvis Costello…

Anything to take my mind off this shit…

These stupid fucks are bound and determined to get us into a shooting war with a major player.

It’s not the getting into a war part that bothers me… it’s getting into a war with the wrong fucking people.

Not because they’ll totally kick our ass, but because we should be united against a common foe – the fucking ragheads.

No more brother wars. No more whites shooting at other whites. Western Man should be united against the Muslims. We can have our ideological differences, and that’s fine. But there’s no reasoning with the fucking Muslims. None. The entire West should be as one against these savages… if you’re bound and determined to go to war and wreck shit, at least make sure you got the right enemy…

We’re so fucked…. these O-tard dipshits are going to get our collective asses in a crack and we’ll be lucky to live through it…

Gonna go check on my preps…

NickelthroweR
NickelthroweR
November 24, 2015 1:00 pm

Greetings,

Fuck. I do not see how this ends well for Turkey. Expect the Kurds to begin receiving advanced weapons. Expect Russian ground forces in Syria.

What remains to be seen is whether or not China gives Russia a Blank Check. If so, our millennials are about to find themselves in their Great War.

God help us.

suzanna
suzanna
November 24, 2015 2:46 pm

This is a sad day.