Ukraine downs Russian Su-35 fighter on eastern front
Photo: Ukraine destroys a Su-35 fighter jet (Getty Images)
"A Russian Su-35 multirole fighter jet was shot down on the eastern front on July 8, 2026," the Ukrainian Air Force said.
No further details have been disclosed so far.
The Su-35 is a Russian 4++ generation multirole fighter developed as a deep modernization of the Su-27 family. The aircraft is designed to achieve air superiority, escort other aircraft, and conduct strikes against ground and naval targets.
The fighter is equipped with powerful thrust-vectoring engines, giving it exceptional maneuverability.
According to open-source data, the Su-35 can reach speeds of up to Mach 2.25 (around 2,400 km/h) and carry a wide range of weapons, including air-to-air missiles, air-to-surface missiles, and guided aerial bombs.
Since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Moscow has regularly deployed Su-35 fighters. The aircraft have been used, among other missions, to launch guided aerial bombs and missiles.
Ukraine has previously succeeded in downing these fighters. Most notably, a Su-35 was destroyed in Russia's Kursk region on June 7 last year.
