Russian news agencies reported the statement Tuesday by general staff spokesman Lt. Gen. Sergei Rudskoi, who also said that militants in Syria fired on a Russian helicopter that was searching for the two pilots of the Su-24, the Associated Press reported.
He said that shooting killed one crew member, a marine, on the Mi-8 helicopter and forced it to land in neutral territory. The rest of the crew was evacuated.
Rudskoi confirmed earlier reports indicating one of the two pilots of the Su-24 died due to “fire from the ground,” adding that the fate of the second pilot remains unclear.
The general also said that Russian radar data showed that Turkish warplanes had violated Syrian airspace in the course of shooting down the Russian plane.