Russians In Occupied Crimea Shoot Down Own Fighter Jet In Friendly Fire Incident

March has been a difficult month for the Russian Air Force - and a really bad month for Russian military pilots. JL 

Oleksandr Shumlin reports in Ukraine Pravda and Martin Fornusek reports in Kyiv Independent:

Reports indicate that the Russians shot down their own Su-27 fighter jet over Sevastopol  after taking off from the Belbek military airfield. The plane crashed into the sea near Crimea. The pilot ejected on time and was picked up by rescuers from the Sevastopol Rescue Service some 200 meters from the shore, according to the governor of Russian-occupied Sevastopol. Russia's Air Force suffered particularly heavy losses in late February and March, losing more than a dozen warplanes, including Su-34 fighter bombers, Su-35 fighter jets, and a rare A-50 military spy plane.

A Russian aircraft has crashed near the city of Sevastopol in occupied Crimea.

Source: Mikhail Razvozhayev, the so-called governor of the city

Quote: "A military aircraft has crashed into the sea."

Details: He said that the pilot ejected. Local Telegram channels posted a video of the aircraft burning. "Russian soldiers shot down their own aircraft in Sevastopol – it was taking off from Belbek airfield," a channel said.

Before that, an explosion rang out. Unconfirmed reports indicate that the Russians shot down their own Su-27 fighter jet over Sevastopol.

A Russian military plane crashed into the sea near occupied Crimea, the Russian-installed head of Sevastopol, Mikhail Razvozhayev, claimed on March 28.

Razvozhayev alleged that the pilot ejected on time and was picked up by rescuers from the Sevastopol Rescue Service some 200 meters from the shore.

The Russian proxy head claimed that the pilot was unharmed and no civilian sites were damaged as a result of the crash. Razvozhayev did not specify the cause of the plane's crash nor the aircraft's type.

Earlier on March 28, Russian Telegram channels shared the purported footage of the burning and falling plane over the occupied peninsula and a parachute of the ejected pilot.

According to claims shared on the Crimean Wind Telegram channel, the plane was accidentally shot down by Russia's own forces. The channel alleged that the plane was downed over Sevastopol after taking off from the Belbek military airfield.

While the exact model of the plane is unclear, footage shared on Telegram channels shows what appears to be a fighter jet. Some channels identified the plane as a Su-35 or a Su-27.

Ukrainian officials have not commented on the claims, which cannot be independently verified.

Russia's Air Force suffered particularly heavy losses in late February and March, losing more than a dozen warplanes, including Su-34 fighter bombers, Su-35 fighter jets, and a rare A-50 military spy plane.