The An-148 suddenly began to drastically lower its altitude and make big maneuvers to evade—
Probably no other pilot in the world would dare to try this.
After all, this is just a civilian airliner, not meant for military use, and its frame simply cannot handle excessive G-forces.
The passengers in the cabin were suffering greatly.
The women's screams could scare the life out of a donkey.
The men were also shouting various "OH MY GODs".
Their bodies were pinned firmly to their seats, unable to move.
Jiang Feng asked loudly with a grim face, "Are we being shot down?"
"Not yet..."
Song Heping glanced out the window.
"But we've been hit."
The R-73 air-to-air missile model acquired by the Daishe Bird isn't the most advanced; they were all outdated models obtained from eastern countries. With a length of 2.9 meters, wingspan of 0.51 meters, diameter of 0.17 meters, launch weight of 105 kilograms, and a warhead weight of 7.3 kilograms, they have a kill rate of around 60% against fixed-wing aircraft.
From the explosion just now, it was a proximity-fuzed R-73. The fragments from the explosion hit parts of the An-148's body, causing some damage.
The captain's rapid descent in altitude and steep dive was perfectly timed, dodging some of the fatal attacks from the fragments; otherwise, the 148 passenger plane would have already disintegrated in mid-air.
But not disintegrating immediately doesn't mean it won't disintegrate.
Song Heping felt the plane's body making cracking sounds everywhere, like an old man with brittle bones being dragged to run five kilometers, with his joints making noises.
Judging by this situation, it won't take a minute before the plane will disintegrate, and everyone will truly become "flying men".
In the cockpit of the Mig-29, several kilometers away.
David, the pilot, gently rubbed his thumb on the missile launch button.
The air-to-air missile he fired earlier exploded behind the passenger plane's engine, and the aluminum fibers scattered from the An-148's body sparkled on the radar screen like silver fireworks.
"The passenger plane is falling into the sea. Should we pursue?"
He asked the command center on the channel.
"Are you sure it's shot down?"
Yager from the command center inquired.
David lightly pulled the control stick, tilting the plane, and took the chance to look down at the sea.
"It's descending rapidly."
"Give it another shot to ensure the target is destroyed."
"No problem."
David responded to the command center, gave a thumbs-up to the nearby wingman, then pointed his index finger at the sea.
Meaning the target had been hit, but needed a finishing blow.
Understanding, the wingman made an OK gesture, indicating he would take care of it.
He then maneuvered the Mig-29 gracefully, pointing its nose down and diving towards the rapidly descending passenger plane.
"Attention, two fighter jets in the northeast direction, you are approaching our airspace and about to enter it. Please turn back immediately, repeat, turn back immediately!"
An Egyptian-accented English warning came through the general international channel.
This was followed by warnings in Arabic.
David glanced at the radar, noticing four fighter jets approaching from the southwest, closing in quickly.
Checking the GPS positioning again, he found that he and his wingman were indeed nearing Egyptian airspace.
This is a sensitive area.
Although the two countries had signed a reconciliation agreement long ago, border and airspace friction have been frequent over the years.
At this moment, the four Egyptian Air Force patrol planes were also confused.
The detected planes clearly showed the characteristics of Soviet fighter jets; they sent inquiries and warnings but received no response.
Which country's planes are these?
What are they doing here?
"Younis, we're approaching Egyptian airspace. We can't expose our identity. Fire another missile at the target and then leave immediately."
"Understood."
The wingman had not fully entered the attack position yet. Receiving the order, he immediately activated radar lock, aimed at the An-148 and fired an air-to-air missile before sharply pulling the nose up to increase altitude, quickly returning to David's lead plane nearby.
"The birds need to head back to their nest."
David said on the encrypted channel.
He watched the passenger plane begin to spiral down like an injured pelican.
At this speed, it was certain to crash into the sea.