Su-27 Went Down Thursday Returning After Performance

The week after the Blue Angels lost Capt. Jeff Kuss in an accident, and the Thunderbirds lost an airplane after a pilot ejected, the Russian Knights demonstration team has lost a pilot in an accident that is similar to the one which fatally injured Capt. Kuss.

The website WorldWarWings.com reports that Maj. Sergy Eremenko was returning from a performance at the opening of a monument honoring airmen near Moscow when the SU-27 flown by Maj. Eremenko developed a problem. Photos posted on the Internet show the plane on fire before it impacted the ground. Witnesses said they saw the plane steer away from populated areas and go down in the woods. The pilot apparently stayed with the airplane to avoid having it come down in an area where there could have been casualties on the ground.

In an unusual twist, Maj. Eremenko also flew in the #6 position for the Russian Knights. He is survived by a wife and two daughters.

The team has cancelled its season until further notice, according to the report.

(Image from video posted to YouTube)

FMI: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russian_Knights