Desperate moment of teammates supporting downed Russian pilot
The pilot flying with Roman Filipov continuously attacked the rebels to protect his teammates, until he was forced to return to base due to running out of fuel.
Rebels shot down Russian Su-25 fighter jet
"I was hit. The right engine is on fire, flying south. The left engine also stopped working. Call the search and rescue team," Major Roman Filipov informed the second pilot in the formation after being hit by a shoulder-fired missile of Syrian rebels.
The formation commanded by Major Filipov, consisting of two Su-25 attack aircraft, was on a mission to attack a target in Iblib province on the afternoon of February 3 when it was attacked by rebels. Hit by a missile, Filipovordered his teammates to increase altitude and hide in the clouds to avoid suffering the same fate, the newspaperKrasnaya Zvezda,The Russian Defense Ministry's press service reported today.
However, the teammate refused to evacuate as ordered by Filipov, continuing to control the Su-25 attack aircraft to circle back and attack the rebels desperately to support his commander.
"When the commander's plane was shot down, everything else was meaningless. I always covered him in the air and did the same when the plane crashed. I attacked the rebel vehicles that were approaching the area where Roman was holding out and destroyed two cars," Filipov's teammate recalled.
The pilot of the other Su-25 quickly called for search and rescue and continuously reported Filipov's coordinates to the command post. "I saw the command post landing but could not see the gun battle clearly because it was getting dark. I was forced to leave when the plane ran out of fuel and started using the emergency fuel supply, just enough to return to base," said his teammate.
Rescue teams were ready to go at the first call. However, the Su-25 crashed in rebel-controlled territory, so the helicopter rescue option was ruled out as too dangerous. The Russian military had to deploy by road, which meant they were unable to reach Major Filipov in time.
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Russian pilots' survival equipment when having to parachute. |
Despite being fiercely attacked by the remaining Su-25, the rebels still tried to surround Major Filipov. Being quickly approached by the rebels, Filipov only had time to draw his pistol to fight back, before being seriously wounded and committing suicide with a grenade to avoid falling into enemy hands.
In response, the Russian air force conducted a large-scale airstrike campaign, killing at least 30 rebel fighters in the area where the Su-25 was shot down.
Russia repatriated Filipov's body with the help of Turkish intelligence. The Russian pilot will be buried with full military honors. Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a decree to posthumously award Major Filipov the title of Hero of the Russian Federation, the country's highest award.