On May 29, 12 Russian soldiers were awarded a total of 15 million rubles ($168,000) after shot down a Ukrainian F-16 fighter jet in a special military campaign area.
The Ukrainian F-16 was confirmed shot down by the Russian Defense Ministry on April 13.
Russian company Fores is the sponsor of the above amount. The award ceremony took place in the border area with the presence of commanders.
The company's press release reads: "Fores have fulfilled its previous commitments and awarded 15 million rubles to Russian servicemen for destroying the first F-16 fighter in the special operations area. The cash certificates worth a total of 15 million rubles were issued to 12 soldiers.
This award promise was made by Fores General Director Sergey Shmotyev on June 8, 2024.
Fores is considered the first private organization in Russia to initiate the form of cash rewards for soldiers who destroyed foreign tanks and fighters in the war zone.
Several other Russian soldiers have also been rewarded by Fores with 5 million rubles ($56,000) for destroying the first Leopard 2 tank in a special military campaign in Ukraine, and 500,000 rubles ($5,600) for each of the following, including the Abrams tank.
Fores is a company headquartered in Yekaterinburg (Russia), specializing in the production of ceramic proppants, used in the field of oil and gas exploitation.
Established in 2002, Fores has grown strongly, achieving an output of up to 100,000 tons of products per month in 2019. The company has more than 2,000 employees and owns 4 production facilities in Asbest, Sukhoi Log, Kurya and Kamensk-Uralsky regions.
In addition, Fores also has a research center in Yekaterinburg and a training center in Sukhoi Log.
