Su-34 crashes in town of Yeisk, pilots eject - Russian Defense Ministry

MOSCOW. Oct 17 (Interfax) - A Sukhoi Su-34 fighter-bomber has crashed in the town of Yeisk, Krasnodar Territory, the pilots ejected, the Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement on Monday.

"On October 17, 2022, the Su-34 aircraft crashed while taking off from a military airfield of the Southern Military District for a practice flight. The aircraft fell in the town of Yeisk," the statement said.

"The ejected pilots reported that the ignition of one of the engines during the takeoff was behind the crash," it said.

"The aircraft's fuel caught fire at the Su-34 crash in a residential neighborhood," it said.

Krasnodar Territory governor Veniamin Kondratyev wrote on Telegram that he travelled to Yeisk. "Emergency services are already at the scene. All regional and local fire rescue garrisons are trying to put out the fire," he said.

The fire following the crash engulfed a nine-story house, causing damage to 17 apartments, Kondratyev said.

"According to preliminary information from emergency services, the military Su-34 crashed. As a result, a nine-story house caught fire. The fire immediately spread to several floors. Seventeen apartments are tentatively damaged," Kondratyev said.

The Russian Investigative Committee opened a criminal case into the Su-34 crash, the committee said in a statement on Telegram.

"The Main Military Investigative Directorate of the Russian Investigative Committee opened a criminal case into the crash of the Su-34 aircraft in the town of Yeisk, Krasnodar Territory," the statement said.

The Investigative Committee noted that forensic experts of its central office were dispatched to the scene of the incident, and "the circumstances and causes of the incident are being established."

The Su-34 has already been reported to Russian President Vladimir Putin, who ordered that all necessary assistance be provided to those affected in the crash, the Kremlin press service said.

"The president instructed Krasnodar Territory Governor Veniamin Kondratyev, Emergencies Minister Alexander Kurenkov and Health Minister Mikhail Murashko to fly to Yeisk to provide all necessary assistance to persons affected in the crash of the military aircraft in the town of Yeisk," the press service said.