Russian Forces Open Fire on Civilian Plane Mistaken for Ukrainian Drone in Bashkortostan

On the evening of November 26, an An-2 aircraft operated by the Russian airline “RusAvia” came under fire near Salavat, Bashkortostan, after being mistaken for a Ukrainian drone, reported local Russian media on November 27.

No injuries were reported, and the plane landed in Ufa, located approximately 150 kilometers away. Russia’s Volga Region Civil Aviation Authority has launched an investigation into the incident.

The An-2 (RA-40935) was conducting an aerial photography mission along the Ufa-Salavat-Ufa route when the attack occurred around 10:30 pm local time.

The three-person crew, including two pilots and a cameraman, had the necessary flight permissions, and the aircraft’s navigation lights were on during the flight.

While flying over Salavat, the aircraft came under fire. The crew immediately reported the incident to air traffic control and returned safely to Ufa.

“The emergency dispatch service in Salavat received numerous calls about a suspected UAV flying over the city. In reality, it was a planned flight by the An-2 aircraft,” said Radik Muratov, head of Salavat’s Civil Defense and Emergency Management Department.

Local Telegram channels shared videos showing the low-flying plane as gunfire erupted from the ground. During the incident, an air raid siren was reportedly heard throughout the city.

Earlier, a Russian military aircraft accidentally dropped a 250-kilogram bomb on a school in the village of Bykovka, located in the Yakovlevsky district of Russia’s Belgorod region, 45 kilometers from the Ukrainian border.