PILOT OF PLANE SHOT DOWN BY TURKEY 'DIED FROM BULLET WOUNDS'
By Will Stewart in Moscow, Russia for MailOnline
The Russian pilot whose plane was shot down by Turkey reportedly died from eight bullet wounds.
Lt-Col
Oleg Peshkov - who was buried yesterday - was hit by gunfire after he
ejected from his stricken Su-24 bomber, it is claimed.
Russian
news outlet Izvestia reported: 'Forensic experts have proved that Oleg
Peshkov died from eight bullet wounds which hit his inner organs.
Snow-covered flowers pictured in front of a portrait of Lt-Col Oleg Peshkov, who was buried yesterday
'The bullets wounded his lungs and stomach organs. There are also numerous injuries and haematomas.'
It is unclear if the 45-year-old airman was struck as he parachuted to the ground or after he landed.
His plane was hit by a Turkish air-to-air missile from an F-16 warplane on November 24.
The
cause of death by gunshot wounds - also reported today by pro-Kremlin
LifeNews - appears to confirm earlier accounts that the pilot was killed
rebel fighters in Syria.
Bruising and other injuries may indicate he was also beaten after he landed.
His co-pilot, Captain Konstantin Murakhtin, managed to hide from rebels for 24 hours before being plucked to safety.
Thousands of mourners flocked to bid farewell to Peshkov at his funeral with full military honours in his home city of Lipetsk.
More
than 10,000 people paid their respects to the pilot who was
posthumously awarded Russia's highest honour on the orders of Vladimir
Putin.
Viktor
Bondarev, commander-in-chief of Russia's Aerospace Forces, who
presented the Hero of Russia medal to his widow, said he was killed
after 'a treacherous strike in the back by Turkey's air force and
leadership'.
Comments
Post a Comment