Fourth military plane crashes in Russia since the beginning of the year
10 October 14:23
A MiG-31 fighter interceptor jet has crashed in Russia’s Lipetsk region during a landing approach, the Russian Defense Ministry has reported. According to the ministry, the accident occurred on October 9 at about 19:20 Moscow time. The plane was landing after a scheduled training flight, which was carried out without ammunition. The fighter jet crashed in a deserted area, [Kommersant] reports.
The MiG-31 is a two-seat supersonic long-range fighter interceptor. It is designed to intercept and destroy air targets, primarily bombers and cruise missiles. The aircraft can reach speeds of up to 3,000 km/h and quickly climb to an altitude of up to 21,000 meters. The MiG-31 crash in the Lipetsk region was the fourth non-combat loss of the Russian Air Force since the beginning of the year. In early July, a Su-34 fighter-bomber crashed in the Nizhny Novgorod region during a scheduled training flight. It was coming in for a landing with one of the landing gear struts failing. The crew tried several times to fix the malfunction, but the situation did not change. At the command of the flight director, the crew brought the plane to a safe zone and ejected. The pilots survived, no one was injured.
In April, a Tu-22M3 bomber missile carrier crashed in the Irkutsk region while on a routine flight. The Defense Ministry reported that one pilot was killed, while four other crew members managed to eject and survived. The crash did not cause any damage. The governor of the Irkutsk region, Igor Kobzev, said that the incident was caused by a technical malfunction of the bomber.
In late March, a Su-25 aircraft crashed in Primorye while conducting a training flight. The Defense Ministry also explained the crash of the attack aircraft as a technical malfunction. The ministry’s report on the crash emphasized that the plane crashed in a deserted area and did not damage any objects on the ground. The pilot managed to eject. The Fighterbomber Telegram channel, which specializes in military aviation, wrote that the cause of the accident was the failure of both engines of the plane.
