Russian Fighter Jet Nearly Destroyed by Friendly Fire; Pilot Dodges 5 Rockets
A Russian pilot narrowly escaped death when a rocket launcher controlled by his own side fired projectiles at him as he flew over it.
Knewz.com has confirmed footage capturing the moment when one of Vladimir Putin’s pilots flew at a low altitude and was nearly struck.
The Su-25 ground attack jet bearing down on the rocket launcher. By: X/@bayraktar_1love
In the 13-second clip, one rocket can be seen launching from the ground, followed by several others in quick succession.
The Su-25 ground attack jet, however, managed to escape the fusillade and continue on its journey unscathed.
Footage of the error, which has made it onto social media, has since captured attention and garnered commentary from many.
The alleged communication in the targeted aircraft during the incident was recorded, translated, and posted to X.
It went as follows:
“MLRS (rocket launcher) is operating,”
“I [expletive] see it,”
“Let them know the GRAD fired right before the plane. Right before. This is so wrong. Let them know.”
“Tell them I am going to fire at them [expletive].”
The MLRS opens fire as the Su-25 jet passes. By: X/@bayraktar_1love
Pro-war Telegram channel Two Majors weighed in on and quipped:
“Our warriors are people of unbridled courage. They are in such a rush to hit the enemy, that they do not look at what is happening around them. The footage is truly unique,” per Newsweek.
Another netizen noted: “Russian Grad MLRS tries to shot down Russian Su-25. Unfortunately the attempt was unsuccessful”
A commenter who seemed to have an understanding of how things should work in a situation like that tweeted: “This is satire right? the grad is shooting in the direction the jet is flying towards and I am pretty sure Su-25s are not flying directly over Russian positions. From the angle they are probably 50 – 100′ apart.”
Su-25 jet passes through the fusillade without a hitch. By: X/@bayraktar_1love
This would not be the first time that Russia attacked one of its own airframes. In early October, British intelligence reported on an incident which it dubbed “highly likely” that Russia downed one of its own jets over Tokmak in south-central Ukraine.
Footage of the incident surfaced depicting an illuminated night sky and a glowing orange orb with trailing smoke as it fell to the ground.
The British Ministry of Defence statement read:
“On 28 September 2023, Russian air defense forces highly likely shot down one of their own Su-35S Flanker M multi-role combat jets over Tokmak, approximately 20 km (12,5 miles) behind the current frontline,” per Forces.net.
Vladimir Putin’s war effort has been peppered by friendly fire incidents. By: X/@amborin
“Although Russia has lost around 90 fixed-wing aircraft since the start of the invasion, this is probably only the fifth loss of a Su-35S, Russia’s most advanced combat jet in widespread service.”
The pilot was believed to have perished in the incident.
For Russia, the downing of its own jets dates back to the early days of its war in Ukraine. In an incident that occurred in July 2022, a Su-34M was downed.
According to The Kyiv Post, the incident occurred over Ukrainian airspace and was confirmed by then-Odesa regional military administration speaker, Serhiy Bratchuk.