A very unusual video from the War in Ukraine has attracted attention on social media. A Russian fighter pilot recorded the images after being shot down in combat by Ukrainians.
The images were initially released by pro-Russian blogger Kirill Fedorov through his channel on the app Telegram. The images begin by showing a plane falling into a tailspin, above the clouds. A small flame is seen at the rear of the aircraft.
Then the camera turns and starts showing the pilot himself. He films himself hanging from the parachute after ejecting from the previously shown aircraft.
After a cut, the aviator appears again, this time at a lower height and below the clouds, allowing him to retract his visor and remove his oxygen mask. In Russian, the unidentified pilot says he was shot down “by surprise”, that he was flying high towards the mission target and that there was no time to react. He is also grateful to be on dry land.
A video appeared online of a Russian pilot who was shot down but managed to eject. He filmed his and his aircraft's crash on his phone.
As the ejection occurred above the clouds and at a considerable altitude, it could either be the pilot of a Su-30/Su-35 fighter or a Su-34… pic.twitter.com/dwYpgLUlmI
- Anton Gerashchenko (@Gerashchenko_en) August 5, 2024
As noted by the The Aviationist, The pilot's calm may indicate that he was shot down inside Russian territory or in a region dominated by Russian troops.
It is not possible to identify the exact model of the plane shown by the pilot. The silhouette indicates that it is a jet from the Sukhoi Flanker family, such as the Su-27, Su-30 and Su-35 fighters or the Su-34 Fullback fighter-bomber.
As it is just a pilot, it is possible that it is a Su-27 or 35, with the latter model being the most likely. The Su-35 has been widely employed by the Russian Aerospace Forces (VKS). At least seven of these modern fighter jets were shot down in the conflict, according to a survey by the portal Oryx.
Ironically, this is not the first time something like this has occurred. In October 2022, another pilot from Russia filmed his own ejection. Commanding a Su-25 Frogfoot attack jet, the Russian pilot was reportedly shot down in the Kherson region, in southern Ukraine. Find out more about the case by clicking here.
