Russian military training aircraft crashes during scheduled flight

A Russian Aerospace Forces (VKS) training aircraft has crashed in Russia's Krasnodar region, according to the aviation-focused Telegram channel Fighterbomber.

The aircraft, identified as a Soviet- and Czechoslovak-produced L-39 Albatros jet trainer, went down while the crew was carrying out a scheduled training flight.

The pilots were practising a series of advanced aerobatic manoeuvres at extremely low altitude, an exercise that requires a high level of precision and carries significant risk.

Search-and-rescue teams, rescue helicopters, as well as representatives of the Russian Defence Ministry and investigative authorities were dispatched to the presumed crash site. Specialists have begun examining the area in an effort to locate the wreckage and recover the flight recorders.

The Russian Defence Ministry has not yet officially confirmed the exact location of the crash or the condition of the crew. A special military aviation safety commission is investigating the incident, with technical failure and pilot error being considered the primary possible causes.

By Jeyhun Aghazada