A Russian general who gave the order to kill civilians has been promoted. Major General Alexander Tolopilo, commander of the 51st Division of the 4th Guards Air Force and Air Defense Army, gave the order to open fire on a civilian airliner.
According to the results of an internal investigation conducted by the 505th Investigation Department of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation, it was found that the Pantsir-S1 complex was in poor technical condition, and organizational shortcomings led to the fact that the crew was unable to recognize the civilian aircraft in time.
On duty were: Senior Navigator of the 51st Division Captain Dmitry Pudovkin, Operational Duty Officer of the Southern Military District Headquarters Lieutenant Colonel Vladimir Yanovsky, and Duty Officer of the 4th Guards Army Command Post Colonel Gennady Eremenko.
The Pantsir air defense system crew transmitted the target parameters to the command: azimuth 338, range 7,000, altitude 490, speed 118, course 230.
The direct order to attack the aircraft was given by the commander of the 51st Air Defense Division, Major General Alexander Tolopilo. When it became clear that the target had not been hit, he ordered a second round of fire.
The AZAL Embraer E190 aircraft was flying from Baku to Grozny. After being hit by a Russian missile, the Grozny airport dispatchers, for some unknown reason, sent it to Kazakhstan. The pilots of the damaged aircraft miraculously managed to fly across the Caspian Sea and tried until the last moment to reach the airfield.
But the damaged aircraft had almost lost control. The last thing the pilots could do was try to glide the uncontrollable aircraft so that it could land as gently as possible. The pilots fought for the lives of the passengers until the very end. As a result of the crash, 38 people died and 29 survived.
Despite the evidence proving the guilt of the high-ranking commander, he was never punished for the criminal order that took the lives of civilians. The Russian general who gave the order to shoot down the passenger plane was promoted. He now holds the position of deputy commander of the 11th Guards Air Force and Air Defense Army.
