Russian Su‑25 fighter jet crash adds to spate of accidents
A Su-25 fighter jet crashed in the Maritime Province of Russia, the Russian defense ministry reported. The pilot survived. A failure of both engines reportedly caused the crash.
According to the defense department, the fighter jet malfunctioned due to a technical fault during a "scheduled training flight," which was conducted without armaments.
Series of crashes in Russia
The crash occurred in an uninhabited area. The pilot managed to eject and survived. He was found and evacuated by a search-and-rescue team. He was not injured.
According to the Fighterbomber channel on the Telegram service, which is associated with the Aerospace Forces, the cause of the crash was a failure of both engines.
The armored subsonic attack aircraft Su-25, known as "Grach," has been in operation since 1981. It is armed with a twin-barrel 30-millimeter GSh-30-2 aircraft cannon and can carry aerial bombs. The aircraft is designed for supporting ground troops and destroying targets in all weather conditions.
Its maximum speed is 590 mph, and its flight range is about 370 miles.
This is already the second combat aviation crash within a week. On March 18, in the Leningrad region, a Mi-28 helicopter crashed. The ministry of defense stated that it was performing a scheduled training flight. Both crew members were killed. No one on the ground was harmed.
Since the start of the war against Ukraine, at least six Su-25s have crashed in Russia.
Ukraine attacks Russian airfield
The Russian Aerospace Forces include 14 squadrons equipped with Su-25s. The total number of aircraft is around 200. Over 80 of them have been upgraded to the Su-25SM version.
Recently, Kyiv attacked a temporary Russian airfield in the Belgorod region, destroying two Ka-52 helicopters and two Mi-8 helicopters.
