The accident was reported by a Russian Telegram channel. An army fighter plane crashed near the Finnish border on Thursday. The wreckage of the plane was found in a forest area near Petrozavodsk, not far from the city’s civil airport, in northeastern Russia, only about 150 km from Finland.
According to the first element reported by local media, the two-seater Su-30 fighter aircraft that was carrying out a mission at the time of the incident experienced problems during take-off, but the exact cause of the accident is still unknown.
Important role in the defense of northeastern Russia
“The pilot was unable to eject,” said specialist media United24. Both crew members were confirmed dead by emergency services who arrived at the scene. The wreckage of the plane was found in an uninhabited forest area, but the crash did not cause any damage to civilian infrastructure.
The crash occurred near the Besovets airfield, the base of the Russian Guards’ 159th Fighter Aviation Regiment. The unit is part of the Western Military District’s 105th Mixed Aviation Division and uses Su-27 and Su-30SM aircraft.
The Su-30SM is one of Russia’s premier multirole combat aircraft, used for air combat, interception and precision strikes. Estimated to be worth around 40 million euros, it carries air-to-air missiles such as the R-77 or R-73. It was this type of aircraft that was sent to the Ukrainian front, to support drones.
Deployed near the Finnish border as well as NATO, the 159th Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment has always played an important role in the air defense of northeastern Russia, by organizing joint patrols, training missions and operational preparatory exercises.
