Originally Posted by
A_Van
Were the Australians around to make such a firm statement?
Yes, it appears quite possible because the Syrian army is not well-trained, but this was during the attack by Israeli AF and a French ship to the Syrian territory. So, both had means to shot down such an easy aerial target.
More data are needed to say anything for sure.
From TASS.
According to Konashenkov, Israel had issued no warning to the command of the Russian military group in Syria of the forthcoming operation.
OR
"A hot-line warning was received less than one minute before the strike, which left no chance for taking the Russian plane to safety," he added.
TASS: Military & Defense - Syria downed Russia's plane because Israeli F-16s used it as cover ? Russian top brass
A lot can happen in 60 seconds.
And it did.