A terrifying clip captured the moment a Russian pilot flew his beat-up aircraft straight into a Ukrainian village.
The plane, engulfed in flames, can be seen heading straight down into villages in the municipality of Antratyst, in Luhansk. Head of the local military association, Artem Lysohor, said the pilot was being selfish in heading straight for a civilian area in his almost-destroyed aircraft.
Sharing the video on Telegram, he said: “And when it [the aircraft] had been hit, he [the pilot] was thinking only about himself, as he was flying the damaged warplane.
“That’s why he flew the aircraft towards the settlements of Antratsyt hromada in occupied Luhansk Oblast, not into fields and forests.
“Residents of the village of Diakove saw this Russian fighter jet killing civilians.”
He added that reports suggest the plane landed in the street. An explosion of smoke can be seen following its rapid descent.
“The number of victims is currently unknown,” he added.
Ukraine took down four Russian fighter jets this weekend, according to Lieutenant General Mykola Oleshchuk, Ukraine’s Air Force Commander.
He said that on Saturday, February 17, two Russian Su-34 fighter-bombers and one Su-35 fighter jet were shot down. Another Su-34 fighter bomber was taken down this morning.
If accurate, it would represent a loss of $100million (£79.million) for Putin.
Russian propaganda has only acknowledged the loss of one of the aircrafts, despite the reports from the Ukrainian Air Force. It said the pilot managed to scramble to eject himself before being “evacuated in a timely manner”.
Mr Oleschuk mocked Russian media, claiming they were worried about admitting to all three losses.
He said: “Let me remind you that the Su-35S is a single-seater aircraft, the Su-34 is a two-seater.
“According to radio interception, one pilot was found, the others were ‘searched for’.”
The commander shared a map showing the spot he claims Russian rescuers were sent to find the pilots.
He also cited data from an international satellite search and rescue system, which indicates at least four ejection cases. The commander teased the Russians with a hint on where to look for “invisible colleagues”.
“There is an international satellite search and rescue system called Cospas-Sarsat. In the event of an accident, it notifies the pilots of the location of their personal radio beacons.
“As you can see, the system is working! In this photo, four Cospas-Sarsats (dots on the map) have been triggered, so look for your ‘brothers’ in these areas! No need to thank me!”
Popular Russian FighterBomber Telegram channel called out Ukraine for “lying” and said there were “no losses”.
