Army Won’t Spare Passengers

The St. Petersburg Times

Published: July 4, 2012 (Issue # 1716)

The Russian military is ready to shoot down passenger planes if they are hijacked by terrorists and flown toward a site of strategic importance, Andrei Dyomin, head of Russia’s Air Defense Headquarters said, Interfax reported.

“If such a plane is directed toward some particularly important place such as a nuclear power station, a military base or a state administrative building whose destruction could result in a catastrophic situation for residents of a city, the decision for a fighter jet to shoot down the plane could be made,” Dyomin said.

Dyomin said that before a plane is shot down, all possible measures to land the plane and confirm that a terrorist is on board will be taken.