Notable Uses Against Military Aircraft
- During Operation Desert Storm, an F-16 was shot down by Strela-3 on 17 February 1991. Russian sources also report about the loss of many military aircraft shot down by the Igla.
- On 6 April 1994, a surface-to-air missile struck one of the wings of the Dassault Falcon 50 carrying three French crew and nine passengers, including Rwandan president Juvénal Habyarimana and Burundian president Cyprien Ntaryamira, as it prepared to land in Kigali, Rwanda, before a second missile hit its tail. The plane erupted into flames in mid-air before crashing into the garden of the presidential palace, exploding on impact. This incident was the ignition spark of the Rwandan Genocide.
- On 27 May 1999, the Anza Mk-II was used to attack Indian aircraft during the Kargil conflict with India. A MiG-21 and a MiG-27 of the Indian Air Force were shot down by Pakistan Army Air Defence forces.
- 2002 Khankala Mi-26 crash: On 19 August 2002, a Russian-made Igla shoulder-fired surface-to-air missile hit an overloaded Mil Mi-26 helicopter, causing it to crash into a minefield at the main military base at Khankala near the capital city of Grozny, Chechnya. 127 Russian troops and crew were killed.
- Early in the 2008 South Ossetia War, a Polish made Grom MANPADS shot down a Russian Tu-22M strategic bomber. One of its crew members was captured (Major Vyacheslav Malkov), two others were killed and the crew commander is missing in action as of August 2009.
Read more about this topic: Man-portable Air-defense Systems
Famous quotes containing the words notable and/or military:
“a notable prince that was called King John;
And he ruled England with main and with might,
For he did great wrong, and maintained little right.”
—Unknown. King John and the Abbot of Canterbury (l. 2–4)
“[I]t is a civil Cowardice to be backward in asserting what you ought to expect, as it is a military Fear to be slow in attacking when it is your Duty.”
—Richard Steele (1672–1729)