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Russian fighter jet crashes in Mediterranean off Syria

November 14, 2016

Moscow has confirmed that a fighter jet which had taken off from the Admiral Kuznetsov carrier has crash landed in the Mediterranean. The pilot was quickly rescued after ejecting himself from the aircraft.

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Russisn MIG-29 fighter jet
Image: picture alliance/AP Images/M. Japaridze

In a statement to Russian news agencies on Monday, the country's defense ministry said the MiG-29K fighter jet crashed due to a "technical fault" a few kilometers from the carrier.

"The pilot's health is in no danger. The pilot is ready to carry out missions," the ministry said, adding that the incident will not affect the operations of the Admiral Kuznetsov carrier.

"The Russian aircraft carrier group is continuing its operations in the Mediterranean in accordance with plan," the defense ministry said in a statement.

"Flights of carrier-borne aircraft are continuing."

Concerns from NATO

The Admiral Kuznetsov carrier and escorting ships arrived in the eastern Mediterranean Sea last week. Pilots of the carrier-borne fighters have been conducting flights over Syria to survey the area.

NATO has expressed concern about the Russian carrier group's deployment, however, saying the move could bode an increase in Russian air raids over Syria, particularly around the besieged city of Aleppo. Attacks on targets close to the city by Russian and Syrian air forces have been suspended for the past four weeks.

ksb/se (Reuters, AFP, AP)