Second pilot of downed Su-24 jet safe, brought to Russian base - Shoigu

MOSCOW, November 25. /TASS/. The second pilot of the Su-24 bomber downed by Turkey has been rescued by the Russian and Syrian forces and is safe and sound, Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu said on Wednesday. "The operation ended successfully. The pilot has been taken to our base. Safe and sound," Shoigu said. He said the rescue operation lasted for 12 hours. "I’d like to thank all our men who were working all night long taking great risks," Shoigu said. The Su-24 was downed by a Turkish F-16 fighter jet on Tuesday morning. Ankara claims the Russian warplane had violated Turkey’s air space while the Russian Defense Ministry says the Su-24 was flying above Syria. Both pilots ejected but one of them was killed by gunfire from the ground. Read more