Roman Nikolayevich Filipov (Russian: Рома́н Никола́евич Фили́пов; 13 August 1984 – 3 February 2018) was a Russian military pilot who committed suicide after being wounded by militants when his Su-25SM jet was shot down in Idlib Province, Syria on 3 February 2018. Filipov was posthumously awarded the honor of the Hero of the Russian Federation.

Biography

Roman Filipov was born on 13 August 1984 in Voronezh to the family of a military pilot and graduated from school No. 85 in Voronezh in 2001.

Upon completing the Krasnodar Higher Military Aviation School, he was posted at the air base in the village of Chernigovka, Primorsky Krai, (200 km north of Vladivostok) in the Russian Far East. In the summer of 2017, he was stationed in Sakhalin.

On 3 February 2018, Filipov was flying a Sukhoi Su-25 accompanied  by another Su-25 at an altitude of about 4,000 meters (13,000 ft) on a routine patrol mission over the province of Idlib He was downed by militants over the province of Idlib, near the town of Maarrat al-Nu'man (57 km north of the city of Hama), or the town of Saraqib, according to other sources, presumably by a shoulder launched surface to air missile. Responsibility was claimed by Tahrir al-Sham (formerly known as Jabhat Al-Nusra) and Jaysh al-Nasr, which is affiliated with the Free Syrian Army.

Filipov held his ground as the militant fighters approached, exchanging fire with them with his sidearm. After being wounded, he blew himself up with a grenade as enemy fighters closed in on his position in order to avoid capture.

He was posthumously nominated for the title of Hero of the Russian Federation. On 6 February 2018, by presidentialdecree, he was posthumously awarded the title of Hero of the Russian Federation.

His body was repatriated to Russia. Commemoration events in his memory were held across Russia. Major Filipov was buried on 8 February 2018 at the Alley of Glory of the Kominternovskoye Cemetery in Voronezh with thousands of people attending the related ceremonies.

Personal life

Filipov is survived by his wife and 4-year-old daughter.