Pilot Safe After Ukrainian Su-27 Crashes Repelling Russian Drone Assault

Ukraine lost a Su-27 fighter jet on the morning of Monday, April 28, while repelling an attack by Russian strike drones.

According to the Air Force’s report on Telegram, the incident occurred “during the performance of a complex combat mission to provide air support to troops and repel an air attack by enemy strike drones.”

A specially created commission has begun investigating the cause of the crash, the Air Force said.

The pilot successfully ejected and was promptly retrieved by a search and rescue team. He was hospitalized for diagnosis and treatment.

“His life and health are not in danger, and his condition is stable,” the Air Force reported.

According to the open sources, the Sukhoi Su-27 (NATO reporting name: Flanker) is a twin-engine, supersonic, super-maneuverable fighter aircraft developed by the Soviet design bureau Sukhoi.

Originally designed to counter large US fourth-generation fighters like the Grumman F-14 Tomcat and McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle, the Su-27 boasts a range of 3,530 kilometers (1,910 nautical miles), heavy armament, advanced avionics, and exceptional maneuverability.

Primarily built for air superiority missions, the Su-27 and its later variants are capable of handling nearly every type of aerial warfare operation. It officially entered service with the Soviet Air Forces in 1985.

Over time, the Su-27 evolved into an entire family of combat aircraft.

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Ukraine Regained Battlefield Initiative but Needs More Aid to Keep It – Fedorov

Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov warned that Kyiv has only a limited window to capitalize on those gains before Russia adapts.

As previously reported by Kyiv Post, Ukrainian forces recently used a Su-27 fighter jet to strike a Russian pontoon crossing in Kursk Oblast. A video, published by the Ukrainian Air Force-linked Telegram channel “Soniah,” shows the jet dropping a US-made GBU-39 Small Diameter Bomb (SDB) on the target.

According to the post, the Su-27 crew destroyed two pontoon crossings in a single sortie, with the second located just a few kilometers away. After the initial airstrike, the area was reportedly hit again by HIMARS rocket systems.