MOSCOW: A Russian fighter jet crashed into a residential building on Sunday in the city of Irkutsk in Russia’s Siberian region, killing both pilots on board. This is the second incident in a week when a fighter jet crashed in a residential area in the region. Igor Kobjaev, the governor of Irkutsk, said the plane crashed into a two-story private residential building that houses two families.
There is no information about the casualties of any person living in the building due to this accident. He said that the affected people would be offered temporary accommodation and compensation. The cause of the accident was not immediately known and an official investigation has started in this regard.
A few days earlier, on October 17, a Russian warplane crashed near a residential building in Yeisk, killing 15 people and injuring 19 others. These plane crashes reflect the pressure on the Russian Air Force as a result of the fighting in Ukraine.
United Aircraft Corporation, a government-controlled group of Russian aircraft-making plants, said in a statement that a Sukhoi-30 fighter jet crashed during a training flight on Sunday, causing a fire. There were no weapons on the plane during this time.
In a video posted on Russian social networks, the fighter plane can be seen falling almost vertically. In another video of the accident, a building engulfed in flames and firefighters deployed to douse the blaze can be seen. The city of Irkutsk, with a population of more than six million, is a major industrial center of Russia, where Sukhoi-30 fighter jets are manufactured.
The Sukhoi-30 is a twin-engine supersonic fighter aircraft used by the Russian Air Force. These aircraft are also included in the Air Force of many other countries including India and China. This is the 11th incident in which a non-war combat aircraft has crashed since the Russian military launched an offensive against Ukraine on February 24.
