Russian Su-34 fighter shot down by American F-16(?)

ISW reports that a Su-34 fighter jet was allegedly shot down yesterday by a US F-16 while dropping bombs.

ISW cannot confirm the claim that exactly The F-16 was involved in the reported loss of the Russian Su-34 and cites information on Telegram. If confirmed, this will be the first incident of a manned Russian aircraft being shot down by a Western-provided F-16 fighter.

Russian military correspondent, closely associated with Russian aviation, writes ISW, said a Ukrainian F-16 shot down a Russian Su-34 fighter in an unspecified area of ​​the theater on October 12. However, he did not provide further details about the incident. A well-known Russian milibloger confirmed that the Su-34 crew was killed, but said that this loss was not related to the actions of Ukraine.

Other military experts suggested that the Su-34 could have crashed as a result of a technical malfunction or human error. A Russian Telegram channel, which is said to be run by Russian Airborne Forces officers and personnel from the Russian Dnepr Group of Forces, stated that a Ukrainian F-16 fighter jet allegedly shot down a Russian Su-34 fighter jet as it was dropping FAB glide bombs with unified planning and correction modules (UMPC) at a distance of about 50 kilometers from the front line.

The Telegram channel later responded to claims that the Su-34 could have crashed due to a technical malfunction or human error, noting that such hypothetical scenarios continue to highlight the problem of wear and tear on Russian aircraft, lack of professionalism among pilots and attrition among pilots.

Russia could lose the Su-34 front-line fighter-bomber in Ukraine, writes “Radio Liberty”. Russian and Ukrainian sources wrote about the loss of the plane earlier on Saturday, including the Telegram channel that publishes insider messages from the Aerospace Forces Fighterbomber.

According to the main version, the crew did not survive. There is no official confirmation of this information, as well as information about where the plane was lost. According to Russian telegram channels, the cause of the disaster was a technical malfunction.

At the same time, the Liveuamap OSINT account on the social network X draws attention to the fact that on Friday, from a video of the Air Command “Center” of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, it became known that Ukraine had begun to use AIM-9X Block II air-to-air missiles received from the United States, which can be mounted on F-16 fighter jets and hit targets at a distance of about 20 miles (32 kilometers).

The Ukrainian side did not comment on this incident, writes 24tv.ua.

And a video on the topic – F-16 vs Su-35. Fighter comparison:

Source link