Russian aircraft shot down by Turkish armed forces

UPDATE: Russia has announced that one of the crew of the aircraft shot down by Turkish military is dead, as is a Russian soldier involved in an attempt to recover the aircraft.

In further news, NATO has called for calm and de-escalation and confirmed that the Russian jet had entered Turkish airspace. In response, the Russian defence ministry has said that it will suspend military contact with Turkey.

TURKISH authorities have released the news that their armed forces have shot down a Russian military aircraft, identified as a Sukhoi SU-24 attack plane on their border with Syria around Latakia on November 24.

According to the Turkish officials, the aircraft was attacked by F-16s of the Turkish air force after reportedly ignoring warnings that it was violating Turkish airspace.

The Russians deny that their aircraft had entered Turkish airspace but confirmed that the pilot and co-pilot had both ejected safely from the downed aircraft.

Only last week, the RAF had to scramble two Typhoons from Lossiemouth in Scotland when radar identified two Russian TU-160 bombers passing close to British airspace. The bombers took an extremely circuitous route in order to hit targets in Idib in Syria, passing through the Straits of Gibraltar accompanied at all times by the Typhoons until they had passed British airspace.