Putin says Russia perfected weapons based on Syria campaign
Russian President Vladimir Putin says that the military’s combat experience gained in Syria has helped develop new weapons systems.
Russia has waged a campaign in Syria since September 2015, helping turn the tide of war in favor of Syrian President Bashar Assad. The Russian military has used the conflict to test its new jets, cruise missiles and other weapons in combat for the first time.
Speaking Sept. 19 at a meeting focusing on military industries, Putin said that new Russian weapons excel their foreign equivalents.
Putin singled out the new Sarmat heavy intercontinental ballistic missiles, the Su-57 fighter jet, the S-500 air defense system and the Armata battle tank, which are set to enter service in the coming years. AP
U.S. Navy: Sailor was struck by propeller on carrier flight deck
The U.S. Navy says a sailor who died aboard an aircraft carrier was struck by the turning propeller of a plane.
The Navy said in a Sept. 19 statement that Airman Apprentice Joseph Min Naglak had just secured an E-2C Hawkeye radar plane to the flight deck. Naglak’s death occurred Sept. 17 aboard the USS George H. W. Bush while it was out to sea.
The Navy said the incident remains under investigation and that his death has been a heartbreaking experience for those on board the carrier.
The 21-year-old enlisted in the Navy in his home state of New Jersey in April 2017. Four months later he had completed his training in Pensacola, Fla., and reported to the ship
The ship remains at sea, and flight operations have resumed. AP
Israeli air force chief due in Moscow after plane downing
Israel’s air force chief is in Moscow to brief Russian President Vladimir Putin on the incident over Syria that led to the downing of a Russian reconnaissance plane.
Syrian missile forces on Sept. 17 mistook the Russian Il-20 for an Israeli aircraft, shooting it down and killing all 15 people aboard. Russia’s Defense Ministry initially blamed the plane’s loss on Israel, but Putin sought to defuse tensions, pointing at “a chain of tragic accidental circumstances.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has offered to share data with Russia on what was happening in the sky over Syria that day and dispatched the Israeli air force chief to Moscow. The official arrived in Moscow Sept. 20. AP