The Ukrainian Air Force's commander, Mykola Oleshchuk, has raised concerns about the Russian military's self-inflicted challenges, suggesting that it may be its own worst enemy. Oleshchuk conveyed a message on Telegram, asserting that Russian ground forces shot down one of their own Su-25 ground attack aircraft on Sunday. He clarified, "I can confidently state that it was not the Ukrainian air defense that shot down the Russian Su-25 attack aircraft! These were clearly the coordinated actions of Russian anti-aircraft troops, for which the entire Ukrainian people sends them great thanks!"
Despite Russia attributing the incident to adverse weather conditions, this marks at least the second instance where allegations of losing an aircraft to friendly fire have surfaced. In September, U.K. intelligence officials claimed they downed one of Russia's prized Su-35s in eastern Ukraine. However, neither of these incidents has been officially verified.