A Russian fighter jet smashed into a home in the Siberian city of Irkutsk during a test flight on Sunday, killing the two pilots, Russian state media reported. It was the second crash of a Russian warplane in a residential area within a week.
The plane, an Su-30, set off a fire, but there were no civilian casualties and the blaze has been extinguished, Russia’s state-run news agency Tass reported, citing emergency officials.
The crash, and one on Monday that left 14 people dead, have come as Russia’s military is under major pressure in its war in Ukraine, facing battlefield setbacks and growing criticism from war supporters who say the country’s defense ministry has bungled the fight.
The Russian Investigative Committee, the country’s main investigation agency, sent forensic specialists to the scene in Irkutsk to investigate, the RIA-Novosti state news agency said.
In the crash last week, an Su-34 jet slammed into the courtyard of a large apartment building in Yeysk, a port and resort town across the Sea of Azov from the Ukrainian city of Mariupol. One of its engines had caught fire during a training mission. Three children were among those killed. The pilots ejected themselves, according to Tass.
