The fateful 8-minute air battle of the American pilot

The US Navy fighter pilots who shot down a Syrian Air Force fighter jet on June 18 have detailed the fateful eight-minute air battle.

The shooting down of the aircraft was the first "air-to-air" kill by the US military since 1999 and the first by the US Navy since 1991, Sputnik reported.

Four pilots involved in the recent downing of a Syrian fighter jet attended the Tailhook 2017 symposium, an event designed to foster camaraderie among U.S. Navy pilots, where they described in detail the dogfight between a U.S. F/A-18E Super Hornet and a Syrian Air Force Su-22 Fitter over Raqqa, Syria.

The pilots took off from the aircraft carrier George W. Bush, which had been in the Mediterranean Sea for several days. Pilot Michael “MOB” Tremel said he and his wingman Jo Jo Krueger were on a simple mission to provide air support to the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a US ally.

“We got to Raqqa, and at that time it was quite hot and there were a lot of other pilots dropping bombs,” Tremel said.

Tremel and Krueger were joined by two other Hornets also from the Bush. They then spotted an Su-22 circling overhead. Tremel said they initially thought the aircraft was from the Russian Air Force—a common sight in the skies over Syria.

Initially, Tremel decided to monitor the Su-24’s activities. While Tremel tried to find the plane’s ID, Krueger focused on communicating with the plane. It wasn’t long before the Super Hornet pilots realized that the plane wasn’t Russian, but Syrian.

Immediately after identification, Tremel transmitted a series of messages to the Su-22. However, the Su-22 continued to approach the Syrian infantry on the ground.

Tremel said he and Krueger’s wingman flew a series of close passes over the Su-22 while issuing warnings. The maneuvers were intended to intimidate the Su-22 into turning around, but they had the opposite effect.

After the Su-22 climbed, Tremel fired an infrared-guided AIM-9X Sidewinder missile, but it missed. Tremel then fired a second missile: a radar-guided AIM-120 medium-range air-to-air missile. This time, it hit its target and the Su-22 dived, its pilot ejecting.

Tremel and Kruegger then decided to return to the George W Bush.

According to Vietnamnet.vn