Roman Filipov

Roman Nikolayevich Filipov (Russian: Рома́н Никола́евич Фили́пов; 13 August 1984 – 3 February 2018) was a Russian military pilot who killed himself in a last stand to avoid being captured after being wounded by militants when his Su-25SM jet was shot down in Idlib Province, Syria, on 3 February 2018. Filipov was posthumously awarded the honor of the Hero of the Russian Federation.[1]

Major

Roman Filipov
Native name
Роман Филипов
Born(1984-08-13)13 August 1984
Voronezh, RSFSR, USSR
Died3 February 2018(2018-02-03) (aged 33)
Saraqib, Idlib, Syria
Allegiance Russian Federation
Years of service2001–2018
Rank Major
UnitRussian Aerospace Forces Russian Aerospace Forces
Battles/warsSyrian Civil War (Russian intervention)
AwardsHero of the Russian Federation
Spouse(s)Olga Filipova (m. ?–2018)
Children2

Biography

Roman Filipov was born in Voronezh into the family of a military pilot and graduated from school No. 85 in Voronezh in 2001.[2][3][4]

Upon completing the Krasnodar Higher Military Aviation School, he was posted at the air base in the village of Chernigovka, Primorsky Krai, (200 km (120 mi) north of Vladivostok) in the Russian Far East. In the summer of 2017, he was stationed in Sakhalin.[3]

On 3 February 2018, during the Syrian Civil War, Filipov was flying a Sukhoi Su-25 accompanied [5] by another Su-25 at an altitude of about 4,000 metres (13,000 ft) on a routine patrol mission over the province of Idlib.[6] Uploaded videos showed the jet was part of a two-ship formation flying at low-to-medium altitude, with the downed aircraft separating and diving to perform a rocket attack. While pulling up after deploying air to ground rockets without deploying defensive flares, the Su-25 was hit by a missile. He was downed by militants over the province of Idlib, near the town of Maarrat al-Nu'man (57 km (35 mi) north of the city of Hama), or the town of Saraqib, according to other sources,[7][8] presumably by a shoulder launched surface to air missile. Responsibility was claimed by Tahrir al-Sham (formerly known as Jabhat Al-Nusra) and Jaysh al-Nasr, which is affiliated with the Free Syrian Army.[9]

Filipov survived the crash and was last seen on live footage being surrounded by militants and committing suicide with a grenade to avoid capture. On the same day, Russian forces retaliated by firing Kalibr missiles targeting rebel positions in Idlib province responsible for the downing, killing at least 30 rebel fighters.[10]

Filipov's body was repatriated to Russia on 6 February 2018, where he was posthumously awarded the title of Hero of the Russian Federation via presidential decree.[11] Filipov was buried on 8 February 2018, at the Alley of Glory of the Kominternovskoye Cemetery in Voronezh, Russia with thousands of people in attendance. In a speech to the Russian Parliament, Russian President Vladimir Putin hailed his courage and service.[12]

See also

Notes
  1. Russian pilot shouts 'this is for our guys' as he blows himself up to evade capture in Syria
  2. «Мечтал стать летчиком»: каким был погибший в Сирии Роман Филиппов // ИА REGNUM, 05.02.2018
  3. Поликарпов В. (5 February 2018). ""Вечного тебе полета": пилот сбитого в Сирии Су-25 служил в Приморском крае". Komsomolskaya Pravda.
  4. Сушинова Я. Минобороны рассказало об обстоятельствах гибели пилота Су-25 в Сирии // Аргументы и факты, 05.02.2018
  5. Последние переговоры Романа Филипова с пилотом второго Су-25: «В меня попали! Хорошо попали! Тяну на юг...» Komsomolskaya Pravda, 7 February 2018.
  6. Летчик принял бой на земле: “Ъ” узнал подробности гибели пилота Су-25 в Сирии Kommersant, 5 February 2018.
  7. "Syria rebels shoot down Russian jet, capture pilot - monitor". Deutsche Welle. 3 February 2018. Retrieved 3 February 2018.
  8. Источник: Сбитый в Сирии самолет оказался российским Су-25
  9. Погибшего в Сирии летчика представили к званию Героя России BBC, 5 February 2018.
  10. "Russian cruise missiles kill at least 30 Syrian rebels after jet fighter downed". USA Today. Retrieved 4 February 2018.
  12. "Tens of thousands mourn Russian pilot killed in Syria". The Washington Post. 2018-02-08. Archived from the original on 2018-02-08. Retrieved 2018-02-09.
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