The Russians claim a “technical failure” was responsible for them shooting down one of their own fighter jets last month. However, there is a realistic possibility that fear of increased Ukrainian air attacks may have prompted Russian air defenders to inadvertently engage their own aircraft, British officials said over the weekend.
The Sukhoi Su-27 twin-engine supersonic jet fighter was engaged and destroyed on March 28 while flying over occupied Crimea. Mikhail Razvozhaev, the Russian-installed governor of Sevastopol, blamed the incident on mechanical problems and claimed the pilot survived, U.K. military intelligence officials said on X.
However, Ukraine conducted airstrikes against several targets in Sevastopol and the Black Sea only a few days before the Su-27 was shot down.
“This almost certainly led to local Russian air defense being at a heightened readiness,” U.K. officials said. “There have been previous unconfirmed reports of similar incidents of friendly fire occurring, usually following periods of Ukrainian action against Russian forces in the illegally occupied territory.”
The increased pressure and tension among Russian air defense operators brought on by the fear of further Ukrainian attacks could be leading them to mistakenly engage their own combat aircraft, British officials said.
“This event, and others if confirmed, likely highlights the lack of situational awareness and coordination between elements of the Russian armed forces, while further demonstrating the second-order impact of Ukrainian actions,” British officials said.