Ukraine’s GUR military intelligence said Thursday it had destroyed a Russian Su-34 fighter bomber deep inside Russian territory.
Video published on the Defense Intelligence of Ukraine’s YouTube channel showed an unidentified person setting fire to the warplane while giving a “sign of the horns” hand gesture.
The video was said to have been shot at the Shagol military airfield in the city of Chelyabinsk, some 1,800 kilometers east of Moscow.
The GUR said on the Telegram messaging app that the aircraft was a Russian Su-34 tactical bomber.
Citing anonymous Ukrainian law enforcement sources, Ukraine’s Suspilne broadcaster reported that the overnight arson attack was part of a GUR “special operation.”
Russia’s Defense Ministry has not commented on Ukraine’s claims or the video.
According to the Dutch open-source intelligence project Oryx, which documents Russian military equipment losses in Ukraine, at least 21 Russian Su-34s have been damaged or destroyed since Moscow launched its invasion in February 2022.
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