Russia has dropped all charges against Major General Alexander Tolopilo, who ordered the shooting down of an AZAL plane over Grozny on December 25, 2024.

Axar.az informs that Minval reported on this.

“On September 2, 2025, an official special meeting was held under the leadership of the Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Aerospace Forces on the case of the AZAL plane. The meeting was also attended by the First Deputy Commander of the 11th Air Force and Air Defense Army, Major General Alexander Tolopilo. At the meeting, they decided to improve interoperability while announcing the “Carpet” signal to prevent similar incidents in the future,” the statement said.

It was noted that it was Tolopilo who gave the order to shoot down the AZAL plane:

“However, a few months after the tragedy, he attended a meeting, gave a report, and continued his service without any public consequences. All official investigations into the general had been completed by that time.”