Russian fighter jet Su-30SM worth $50 million crashes in Black Sea, no confirmation from Moscow yet
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "Russian fighter jet Su-30SM worth $50 million crashes in Black Sea, no confirmation from Moscow yet")
Russian Su-30 fighter performs during the MAKS 2009 international aerospace show outside Moscow in 2009 Photograph: (AFP)
The Ukrainian Navy reported that a Russian Su-30SM fighter jet likely crashed near Snake Island during a mission. This adds to recent Su-30 losses amid ongoing Russia-Ukraine war. The aircraft may have been based in Crimea and belonged to the Black Sea Fleet.
The Ukrainian Navy on Thursday (Aug 14) said that Russia has likely lost a Su-30SM fighter jet during a mission southeast of Snake Island (Zmiinyi Island). The aircraft, a twin-engine, two-seat multirole fighter, reportedly crashed for unknown reasons. Ukrainian intelligence intercepted Russian radio communications indicating the loss of contact with the jet, prompting a search and rescue mission by Russian forces. As per reports, debris was spotted on the sea’s surface, but the pilots remain unaccounted for.
The reported crash adds to the growing number of Russian Su-30 losses during the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war. On May 2, Ukraine claimed it shot down two Su-30 jets using air-to-air missiles launched from sea drones near Novorossiysk. A third aircraft was likely damaged during a strike on an airfield used for launching Kinzhal missiles on May 9. These incidents indicate increasing challenges for Russia’s aerial operations. While Russia has not officially confirmed the loss, pro-Kremlin Telegram channel Fighterbomber, indirectly acknowledged it with a poetic caption and a black-and-white image of a Su-30. Other sources, like the Crimean Wind monitoring group, suggest the jet may have been based at the Saki or Belbek airfields in occupied Crimea. Russian Telegram channel Military Informer claimed the aircraft belonged to the Black Sea Fleet’s naval aviation.
About the Su-30SM
The Su-30SM, NATO reporting name “Flanker-H,” is a 4+ generation multirole fighter developed by Russia’s Irkut Corporation. It is equipped with thrust-vectoring engines, a phased-array radar, and advanced avionics, allowing it to perform both air superiority and ground attack missions.
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It was confirmed on Friday (Aug 8) that Trump will meet with Putin on August 15 to negotiate an end to the war in Ukraine. Both the Kremlin and the White House confirmed the summit. The US had proposed a tri-party meeting between Putin, Trump and Zelensky, but Putin expressed his reservations about the same. Trump has now said that he would know withing two minutes of the meeting with Putin if he is interested in ending the Russia-Ukraine war. This will be the first in-person summit between Trump and Putin after their last meeting at the Helsinki Summit in 2018 in Finland. They met briefly at the 2019 G20 Summit in Osaka, but no formal summit was held.
