Two pilots involved in a midair crash between two Sukhoi Su-34s today have been dramatically rescued after ejecting.
Both were found at separate locations in the icy Sea of Japan and were in “satisfactory” conditions, said Russian defence sources.
The fighter bombers collided over the Strait of Tatary (or Tatar Strait) in Russia’s Far Eastern Khabarovsk Region.
The jets - each with a crew of two - were reported to have vanished from radar screens.
Two parachutes from the ejected pilots were seen in the skies.
Later it was said that one of the warplanes had landed safely with a damaged engine while the other crashed into the sea.
Initially one pilot was spotted on a raft in the sea.
"A pilot was lifted from the life raft to a Mi-8 helicopter of the search and rescue forces of the Eastern Military District.
“According to the report from the rescue site, the pilot's condition is satisfactory,” said the Russian defence ministry.
TV 360 then reported that the second Su-34 pilot was found.
“He is in satisfactory condition,” said a source.
The aircraft were reported to have been “manoeuvring without ammunition” when they collided.
"The theory of the pilots' failure to measure a safe distance between the two aircraft” is being investigated, said a source.
One account said the planes “brushed against each other”.
Interfax reported that one of the Su-34s landed with a ‘defunct’ engine after the collision.
“One Su-34 fell after the collision, and the other managed to land with a defunct engine,” a source said.
The bombers were performing scheduled flights from the Hurba airfield located ten miles outside Komsomolsk-on-Amur.