Free Republic

Ukraine targeted the Borisoglebsk airfield in Russia's Voronezh Oblast overnight on July 5, damaging a warehouse with guided bombs, aircraft, and other military assets, Ukraine's General Staff reported. The airfield hosts Su-34, Su-35S, and Su-30SM jets thatRussia regularly uses in air strikes against Ukraine, according to the military. The strike may have destroyed a training and combat aircraft, with further assessments underway. The NASA Fire Information for Resource Management System (FIRMS) detected a fire near the Borisoglebsk military airfield shortly after the strike. Residents in the area reported 8–10 powerful explosions around 2 a.m. local time, according to Russian independent...

A Russian Su-30SM fighter jet crashed into the Black Sea on the night of September 10 near Sevastopol during a strike operation targeting Ukraine. The aircraft, which took off from the Saki airbase in Novofedorivka, disappeared from radar after launching four of its six missiles at maritime targets, according to initial reports. Sources suggest that the fighter jet may have been shot down by a man-portable air defense system (MANPADS) fired from a boat in the Black Sea. Although the exact cause of the crash has not been confirmed, reports from the area point to a possible MANPADS strike. According...

In little over a week, Russia lost its second fighter jet, Su-30, to an uncanny crash when it was carrying out a massive aerial bombardment of Ukrainian cities and battling in the Kherson region. On October 23, an apartment building in Irkutsk, Siberia, was struck by a Russian Sukhoi Su-30SM Flanker multi-role fighter, killing both crew members and starting a massive fire on the ground. Su-30 is a two-seat, twin-engine, highly agile fighter aircraft produced by Sukhoi Aviation Corporation of Russia. The Su-30s are manufactured at the neighboring Irkutsk Aviation Plant, where the jet is reported to have just taken...