An Ilyushin Il-76 transport operated by Syrian Air has disappeared from flight tracking amid uncertainty over the fate of Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad. The long-time president has reportedly fled Damascus after a lightning advance by rebel fighters reached the outskirts of the capital city on 7 December.
The New York Times reports that Assad has left the capital, but his exact whereabouts are unknown. Without any available confirmation as to his fate, speculation abounds that Assad was aboard the now missing Il-76 (registration YK-ATA) that departed Damascus at 1:55 UTC on the morning of 8 December. The jet was operating as Syrian Air flight 9218, according to tracking service FlightRadar24.
After take-off, the flight moved east toward the Syria-Iraq border, before swinging northeast toward Syria’s Mediterranean coast. Russia, whose military support was instrumental in saving the Assad government from rebel advances a decade ago, maintains a strategic naval base at the Syrian port of Tartus. No destination was listed for flight 9218 at its time of departure. Available flight tracking data shows the four-engined jet passing directly over the rebel-controlled city of Homs and continuing northeast before abruptly reversing course as it reached Syria’s coastal mountain range.
The flight moved back toward Homs before disappearing from flight tracking at 2:32 UTC, less than an hour after take-off. It is unclear if the aircraft merely stopped transmitting or if some unknown incident forced the jet down. Available data from tracking service FlightAware shows flight 9218 reached a maximum altitude of 23,650ft around 2:10 UTC before moving into a steady descent. The Syrian air force maintained an air base at Al-Qusayr in the vicinity of Syrian Air 9218’s last known position. That area is now within rebel-controlled territory and the state of the airfield is unknown.
Amid the ongoing Syria crisis, Syria’s army command on Sunday, 8 December 2024, notified officers that President Bashar al-Assad’s rule has ended. This comes after Assad faced a rapid rebel offensive that took Syria, and the world, by surprise. Syrian rebels have said that Damascus is “now free of Assad.”
Meanwhile, a frantic search is underway to locate the deposed Syrian president, as rebel forces question Syrian military officers and intelligence officials who may have knowledge of his whereabouts. Apart from the rebels, open-source flight trackers have revealed that the last plane to leave Damascus was an Ilyushin-76 aircraft, flight number Syrian Air 9218. This aircraft was likely carrying Assad.
Did Bashar al-Assad's Plane Crash?
— khaled mahmoued (@khaledmahmoued1) December 8, 2024
Sudden Disappearance and Altitude Change Suggests It Was Shot Down!!
Unconfirmed information is being circulated about the sudden descent of the plane that was reportedly carrying Assad after it disappeared from radar and dropped suddenly from… pic.twitter.com/fpFQxQaq0K
Flight number Syrian Air 9218 took off shortly before rebels seized control of the airport. The plane flew east, then deviated north, and its signals vanished from radars as it circled over Homs. Rebels who fought against the Syrian leader stormed the presidential palace in Damascus and looted his belongings, videos of which are going viral on social media. The videos also show rebels inside the presidential palace and celebrating on the streets.
🇸🇾 #BREAKNEWS | PLANE CRASH OF BASHAR AL ASSAD NEAR HOMS! IT DEPARTED DAMASCUS AIRPORT, TOOK A TURN AND REACHED AN ALTITUDE OF 500 METERS! THEN CRASHED!
— DxnixlRxbrxck (@DRxbrxck) December 8, 2024
INFORMATION IN PROCESS… pic.twitter.com/J30OKgafYi
Unconfirmed reports suggest that Bashar al-Assad attempted to flee the capital by plane, but contact with the aircraft was lost. Official sources have not confirmed Assad’s whereabouts or the possibility of a crash. The Syrian opposition issued a statement:
“Damascus has been liberated from Bashar al-Assad. To Syrian refugees around the world, we say: a free Syria awaits you.”
Syrian Prime Minister Muhammad Razi al-Jalali addressed the nation, declaring his intention to remain in the country and continue governing. He emphasized:
“We are ready to cooperate with any leadership chosen by the people. We extend a hand to every Syrian citizen who wants to preserve the state and believes that Syria belongs to all Syrians.”
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) reported that the army’s command has informed its personnel of the regime’s collapse. Officers and soldiers in the Latakia region were instructed to stand down from service.
