During a training flight in the northwestern region of Karelia, a Su-30SM fighter belonging to the Russian Aerospace Forces was involved in an accident that resulted in its loss, as well as the death of the two pilots on board. The news was confirmed on the social network Telegram by the governor of the region, Artur Parfenchikov, who indicated that the incident did not cause any damage or casualties among the nearby civilian population.
According to statements issued by Governor Parfenchikov: “(…) two crew members died in the crash. The aircraft was conducting a training flight. There were no injuries; the plane crashed in a forested area far from populated zones. Efforts are underway to determine the cause of the fighter aircraft accident.” In an additional message, it was noted that the aircraft had crashed in a wooded area near the town of Petrozavodsk, specifically in the surroundings of Lake Lososinskoye, which means the accident did not occur far from the airfield located there.
The Russian Ministry of Defence ruled out that the aircraft had been participating in combat missions, stating that its flight had been scheduled as a training exercise and that it was not equipped with armament. The Ministry also indicated that, according to the information available, the Su-30 was lost at around 19:00 (Moscow time), while later messages suggested that the aircraft belonged to the 159th Fighter Aviation Regiment. If so, it is one of the units responsible for patrolling the borders between Russia and Finland, forming an important part of the country’s air defence network.
Furthermore, no additional details have been provided so far regarding the specific cause that led to the accident. However, Western analysts have already begun to speculate on a wide range of possible factors. Among them are the reduced flight hours available to Russian pilots for training missions, the reassignment of more experienced pilots to combat operations in Ukraine, and a perceived reduction in compliance with safety standards needed to ensure aircraft remain in proper operating condition.
In that regard, it is worth recalling that the Russian Aerospace Forces had already lost a Su-34 in July of this year while it was conducting another scheduled training flight over the Nizhny Novgorod region. At that time, suspicion fell upon a failure in the aircraft’s front landing gear, although the pilots were able to eject safely without further issues. Similar incidents occurred in September 2023 in the Voronezh region, as well as in October 2022, when a Su-34 crashed into a residential building in Krasnodar.
*Images used for illustrative purposes
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