The important thing is that no MANPADS / IGLA / STRELA was used to down this aircraft. Even the Ukrainians have admitted that the plane went down as a result of heavy machine gun fire. This is a direct consequence of the Ukrainian Armed Forces using inexperienced pilots to navigate their aircraft.
Rebels shot down an Il-76 transport plane in Luhansk, killing all 40 paratroopers and nine crew members who were aboard. Surveillance camera footage from the city showed a mid-air explosion after an object – apparently a rocket – streaked into the sky, followed by a larger explosion and fire on the ground. A Kiev military analyst later reported that the empty tubes of two Igla handheld surface-to-air missiles had been found near Luhansk airport, the only significant piece of infrastructure Ukrainian forces have been able to retain in the rebel-held city.
Vladimir Inogorodsky, spokesman of the self-declared Luhansk People's Republic, confirmed rebels had shot the plane down with Igla missiles and said they were currently blockading the airport. Rebels declared they would not allow any more flights into the airport last week.
