on Mar. 23, 2021, a Russian Air Force Tu-22 Backfire bomber crashes in Kaluga Region killing three crew members on board.
Now according to the information released by the Russian Defense Ministry, the accidental ejection seat activation during the preflight operations causes the crash.
Three of them received fatal injuries, as their parachutes did not deploy in time: “The altitude was too low for the parachutes to work, and three crew members have received fatal injuries when they landed,” the Russian MOD said in a statement.
Among the crew members who died in the incident, there was also the regiment commander, Colonel Vadim Beloslyudtsev, who was a pilot-instructor on the planned flight.
While the Tu-22M3 is a nuclear-capable bomber, Russian media outlets reported that there were no nuclear warheads onboard the aircraft at the time of the incident.
There are unconfirmed reports that the damage to the bomber is limited and that it may be possible to return it to service after repairs.
