Reports of Loss to Friendly Fire Unconfirmed

Russia, in what may or may not be a regrettable instance of fratricide, has reportedly shot down one of its own Sukhoi-34 bomber aircraft. The $36-million, twin-engine, all-weather, supersonic, medium-range fighter/bomber/strike aircraft was repeatedly downed near the city of Alchevsk in the Luhansk Region of Ukraine. Alchevsk is currently occupied by Moscow-backed separatist forces.

Videos and images shared by the Strategic Command of the Armed Forces of Ukraine on the Telegram messaging app appear to show the charred remains of a Russian Su-34 fighter-bomber.

In the video, the cameraman alleges that a Ukrainian plane was shot down, but an inscription on the badly damaged aircraft states that it is a jet belonging to Russia's Air Force. That the aircraft had been brought down by Russian friendly fire was implied by Ukrainian media outlets, including TSN, which reported that a message had circulated on Telegram that the Su-34 jet had been accidentally shot down by Russia's own air defenses.

Whether or not the SU-34 was actually shot down, and by whom, remain matters of speculation.

The Ukrainian news outlet Glavred alleges Russian citizens, after seeing the aforementioned Telegram video, expressed in their comments a collective belief that the downed aircraft was Ukrainian. The video was then reportedly deleted—ostensibly by the Russian government—after it became clear that the wreckage was that of a Russian bomber.

U.S. news agencies have thus far been unable to independently verify the aircraft’s registry or the manner in which it came to its end, and have reached out to Russia's foreign ministry for comment. Russian authorities, however, have yet to make a statement pertaining to the matter—aside from conceding that the Su-34 costs approximately $36 million per unit.

Western news outlets have circulated reports that Russian military aircraft have largely underperformed throughout the war, which President Vladimir Putin launched in February for reasons the Russian government states will be made presently and eminently clear before the United Nations.

FMI: https://structure.mil.ru/structure/forces/air.htm