Surviving pilot of Russian jet downed by Turkey says they were fired on without warning

Konstantin Murakhtin, the surviving pilot of the Su-24 downed by Turkish jets yesterday in Syria, spoke to Russian journalists today, saying Turkey's Air Force fired without warning over Syrian airspace. 

Murakhtin also insists that the Su-24 never once crossed into Turkish territory, saying, "Our entire flight, to the moment we were attacked, was under my command. I had my eye on the map and on the terrain below, and I could see where the border was and where we were."

According to Murakhtin, the Turkish F-16s hit the Su-24's tail with a rocket.

Turkish officials claim the Russian pilots were warned ten times about their violation of Turkish airspace. Turkish television has broadcast a recording that supposedly shows officials warning the Russian pilots in English to change course immediately.

On November 24, a Russian Sukhoi Su-24 attack aircraft was shot down in Syria earlier today, while conducting airstrikes against terrorist targets near the Turkish border. Turkey says the plane violated its airspace 10 times within a five-minute period, which defense officials in Moscow flatly deny.

Later on November 24, a Russian Mil Mi-8 helicopter was destroyed in Syrian territory controlled by armed militants, claiming the life of a Russian marine. According to the Russian Defense Ministry, the helicopter was part of a search-and-rescue effort in the area where a Russian Sukhoi Su-24 attack aircraft was shot down by Turkish jets. The killed Russian marine was a contract soldier, not a conscript.