Russian Su‑30SM downed over Black Sea amidst mounting tensions

The Main Directorate of Intelligence of Ukraine confirmed the destruction of the Russian Su-30SM fighter. Ukraine acknowledges that during an operation in the Black Sea, special forces soldiers destroyed a combat aircraft belonging to the 43rd Separate Naval Aviation Regiment of the Russian Aerospace Forces.

The Su-30SM aircraft was stationed at an airport in the city of Saki in temporarily occupied Crimea. The occupiers lost contact with the pilots controlling the machine around 11 PM Eastern Time.

Three hours later, the Russians began a search and rescue operation. It involved, among other things, an An-26 aircraft and Mi-8 and Ka-27 helicopters.

After several hours, search participants reported to the command a characteristic fuel slick discovered in the sea 69 kilometres northwest of Cape Tarkhankut. Then they also saw the wreck of the destroyed Su-30SM.

The event was first reported by the pro-Ukrainian channel Crimean Wind on Telegram, citing Russian media reports. The aircraft was supposed to be flying together with a Su-35S fighter.

The mission's goal was to launch Kh-31P anti-radiation missiles as part of the support for another drone and missile attack on Ukraine. The machine launched four out of six missiles and then disappeared from radar screens northwest of the Crimean Peninsula.

The Crimean Wind channel commented that the lack of information about the crew's fate might be why channels close to the Russian Aerospace Forces remain silent about the matter. It is unknown whether to publish obituaries or inform about a successful Russian combat rescue operation.

Although Russia has not confirmed the loss of the aircraft, Ukrainian media have reported that the Russian machine fell victim to Ukrainian F-16 pilots. However, as Defence24 notes, the downing of the Russian Su-30SM by an F-16 is only one of the possible scenarios, as the Patriot system could also have contributed, given its range would also allow for the destruction of the Russian aircraft.

The machine could have also had an accident. After launching four Kh-31P missiles, a malfunction could have occurred, leading to the loss of the aircraft.

The Su-30SM is a Russian multi-role aircraft developed based on the Indian version of the Su-30MKI. The machine was created for the Russian Air Force. It can refuel in flight and has a system that allows the generation of false radar images of the aircraft.

Experts believe that the Su-30SM fighters could be the main opponents of the F-16 in aerial combat. The cost of such an aircraft is about 50 million dollars.

Source: t.me/s/Crimeanwind