Russian Su-30 Fighter Jet Reportedly Disappears Near Crimea

A Russian Su-30SM fighter jet disappeared near Sevastopol on the night of September 10th, and it is believed the aircraft may have crashed.

According to reports from the Telegram channel “Crimean Wind” citing Russian media sources, the Su-30SM, along with a Su-35, was conducting missile launches over the Black Sea, north of Sevastopol. The aircraft reportedly fired four Kh-31P missiles towards mainland Ukraine before it disappeared from radar. The jet was based at the Krymsk airfield in Russia’s Krasnodar region.

Search operations involving Mi-8 and Ka-27 helicopters from the Russian Black Sea Fleet’s Kacha airbase were launched in an effort to locate the missing aircraft. The search team identified an oil slick approximately 3 kilometers in diameter in the designated search area, along with aircraft debris, including a wing. Recovery of the wreckage has so far been unsuccessful.

Earlier, in late August, a Mi-8 helicopter carrying around 20 people went missing in Russia, and earlier this year, a Su-34 bomber crashed in North Ossetia, resulting in the deaths of the crew. Similar incidents have occurred throughout Russia, including a Mi-8 helicopter crash in the Chelyabinsk region last year, which claimed the lives of all onboard.