Overview
- Russian officials say the four-person crew ejected and were hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries after the aircraft went down near the village of Kamenka in Irkutsk region.
- The Defence Ministry reported there were no weapons on board during the training flight.
- Local authorities have cited a possible engine failure as a preliminary cause and an official investigation has been launched.
- Unverified social-media videos circulated showing the plane losing altitude and exploding, but their authenticity has not been independently confirmed.
- Open-source analysts have already recorded multiple Tu-22M3 losses since 2022, and this crash will increase scrutiny of fleet availability and long-range strike capability.