The Russian Ministry of Defense announced that it had succeeded in downing a Ukrainian Sukhoi Su-27 (NATO reporting name Flanker). The ministry further claimed to have shot down multiple High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) rockets and several dozen drones since the start of the New Year.

In a statement posted on the Telegram social messaging app, the Kremlin put Kyiv's tally of battlefield losses at 651 fixed-wing aircraft, 283 helicopters, and 39,144 unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV).

"Air defense systems shot down a Su-27 aircraft of the Ukrainian Air Force, six rockets of the U.S.-made HIMARS multiple launch rocket system, and ninety-seven aircraft-type unmanned aerial vehicles," the ministry said in its social media post but did not state where or how the advanced multirole was shot down.

Kyiv has not acknowledged the loss of the Soviet-era fighter or confirmed the total losses. Moscow's claims have been previously seen as exaggerated.

The Su-27 in the Crosshairs

The first designs of what was to become the Su-27 began in the Soviet Union in the early 1970s, and the aircraft was initially envisioned as an air superiority fighter/interceptor, in essence, Moscow's answer to the F-15 Eagle. However, development of the warplane was slow going, and the prototype didn't make its maiden flight until May 1977. Moreover, in its initial form, the T-10 prototype aircraft displayed several serious deficiencies – so much so that a complete redesign was required.

It only reemerged as the radically reworked T-10S-1 in 1981.

The aircraft finally reached series production in 1982 as a single-seat multirole fighter, receiving the designation Su-27 (NATO reporting name Flanker-B). A two-seater variant, the Su-27UB (NATO reporting name Flanker-C), was introduced two years later. By the end of the Cold War, around 400 Su-27s in both versions were produced for service with the Soviet Air Force. It was believed it would be suited to engaging U.S. Air Force B-52 and B-1 bombers.

After the collapse of the Soviet Union in late 1991, the Su-27 remained the backbone of the Russian Air Force throughout the 1990s and early 2000s, with many of the aircraft undergoing mid-life upgrades and enhancements, which transformed them into the re-designated Su-27SM.

Despite being touted as one of its most capable warbirds in the latter stages of the Cold War, Moscow opted not to deploy the Su-27 to Afghanistan.

As Brent Eastwood previously wrote for The National Interest, "The Su-27, surprisingly, has seen little combat. Export models have flown in the Angolan civil war and the Ethiopia-Eritrea civil war, both sides of the current Ukrainian frozen conflict, and in Syria. The air-to-air combat happened during the Ethiopia-Eritrea conflict when an Ethiopian Su-27 downed an Eritrean MiG-29."

Until the war in Ukraine, the Su-27 had zero air-to-air combat losses – proving if you don't use it, you won't lose it!

Ukraine's Su-27 – How Few Remain?

At the start of the war nearly three years ago, it was believed that the Ukrainian Air Force had around fifty Su-27s – inherited following the dissolution of the Soviet Union – still in service. That number is reported to be down to just a couple dozen now.

Kyiv has gone to great lengths to keep its Su-27s flying, cannibalizing parts from damaged or otherwise non-airworthy fighters, while it recently modified the aircraft to carry American-made GPS-guided glide bombs. According to David Axe, writing for Forbes.com just last month, multiple Su-27s were used in the Kursk Oblast to lob the ordnance onto Russian positions. However, the tactic, also seen in a post on social media, involved the fighters flying at a low altitude before dropping the bomb and immediately banking to avoid Russian air defenses.

That could explain the loss of one of the fighters on Thursday.

"This method­ to fly low, climb, release bombs, and retreat ­minimizes a warplane's exposure to enemy fire without seriously constraining a bomb's range. Released from high altitude, a GPS-guided GBU-39 might travel farther than sixty miles under its pop-out wings. But flying high in the plan [sic] view of enemy radars is dangerous for all but the stealthiest aircraft. A Su-27 isn't stealthy at all," wrote Axe.

Even with minimal exposure, one pilot's mistake and/or luck from the forces on the ground can result in a downed aircraft. That may have been the case with Ukraine's Flanker.

Peter Suciu is a Michigan-based writer. He has contributed to more than four dozen magazines, newspapers, and websites with over 3,200 published pieces over a twenty-year career in journalism. He regularly writes about military hardware, firearms history, cybersecurity, politics, and international affairs. Peter is also a Contributing Writer for Forbes and Clearance Jobs. You can follow him on Twitter: @PeterSuciu. You can email the author: [email protected].

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