Ukrainian forces shoot down Russian Su-34 jet in Zaporizhzhia sector

The Ukrainian Air Force units have destroyed a Russian Su-34 aircraft in the Zaporizhzhia direction, the Air Force said in a statement.

At 04:00 on September 25, 2025, Ukrainian defenders shot down the Russian Su-34 while it was conducting strikes on the city of Zaporizhzhia using guided aerial bombs, Caliber.Az reports per Ukrainian media.

The Air Force specified that the Russian jet was destroyed during the execution of a combat mission.

This event is the latest in a series of Ukrainian successes against Russian aircraft in 2025, following shootdowns of a Su-35 in June over Kursk and two Su-30s in May via naval drones. As of September 2025, Ukraine reports over 360 Russian fixed-wing aircraft lost since the full-scale invasion began in February 2022, though Russian sources often dispute these figures or attribute losses to technical failures.

Zaporizhzhia, a strategic southeastern hub near the occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, has been a frequent target, enduring repeated strikes that have caused over 1,000 civilian deaths in the region since 2022, per UN data.

By Khagan Isayev