Epress.am News from Armenia
The reasons for a Su-25 military jet that crashed in Azerbaijan on Thursday have become known, reports Trend news agency. According to an official statement by the country’s defense ministry, the reason had to do with the front landing gear of the aircraft.
“The Azerbaijani Air Forces’ warplane SU-25 crashed during a training exercise on Feb. 3. When problems arose in opening of front undercarriages, the airplane’s crew, in accordance with set rules, used all possible measures for landing. However, the undercarriages failed to open during landing.
“During this time the crew was in touch with the command post. After all opportunities were exhausted, the crew was ordered to move away from the residential area and bale out. The warplane fell down on the desert area in 18 kilometers from the residential area. The cause of the accident is being investigated,” reads the statement.
Recall, the Su-25 Frogfoot close air support aircraft crashed on Thursday in the Kurdamir district of Azerbaijan, about 200 kilometers (125 miles) northwest of the capital, Baku.
Trend news agency Thursday cited Azeri Defense Ministry’s spokesperson Eldar Sabiroglu as saying that the two crew members ejected from the plane and survived the crash without injury.
The Azeri Air Force has about a dozen Soviet-era Su-25s, which are poorly maintained due to budget constraints, reports RIA Novosti. A previous Azeri Su-25 crash in March 2010 killed the pilot.
Updated on Feb. 4 at 1 pm (+4 UTC/GMT): Defense ministry official statement added.