A Sukhoi Su-57 crashed into the taiga, in Khabarovsk Krai territory. The pilot managed to eject. According to the preliminary investigation, the cause is due to a malfunction of the tail flight controls.
On December 24, 2019, a Sukhoi Su-57 crashed in the territory of Khabarovsk Krai. The pilot managed to eject. The accident — confirmed by United Aircraft Corporation (UAC) — occurred during tests in the taiga, far from Komsomolsk-on-Amur. Experimental flight test aircraft are produced at the Komsomolsk-on-Amur aeronautical plant (KnAAZ, Sukhoi branch). The Su-57 aircraft had not yet been transferred to the armed forces and still belonged to the manufacturer.
It is the first crash of a Sukhoi Su-57 fighter. The Su-57 made its first flight in January 2010 at Komsomolsk-on-Amur. In December 2017, it flew with new engines, and in late January 2018 it started flying with weapons.
In March 2018, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said the last Su-57 fighters had been deployed to Syria. A few months later, Sergei Choigou said that tests were conducted in February, during which test launches of promising cruise missiles were carried out from the plane.
In June this year, the Russian Defense Ministry ordered a first batch of Su-57 fighters from United Aircraft Corporation. The contract was signed in the presence of Russian President Vladimir Putin at the 2019 army exhibition, and includes the supply of 76 aircraft.