Russian MiG-29 down in the Med. - BBC/Curt Lewis

Russian MiG-29 fighter jet crashes in Mediterranean

Russia's Smokey Carrier Loses Fighter Jet on First Day of Operations
The pilot was safely recovered.

The Russian carrier Admiral Kuznetsov, whose long voyage from Northern Russia to the coast of Syria was the subject of intense international scrutiny earlier this month, has lost a fighter plane on the very first day of combat operations. The unnamed pilot ejected and was picked up by Russian search and rescue forces.

US Naval Institute News says the downed fighter was part of the 100th Independent Shipborne Fighter Aviation Regiment and one of four MiG-29KUBR fighters onboard the Kuznetsov. The MiG-29KUBR is a two seat aircraft, but it appears there was only one crewman aboard when it went down.

The fighter was on approach to land on the carrier and two kilometers away when there was a "technical fault." A search and rescue helicopter located the pilot and rescued him. According to The Aviationist, the MiG was accompanied by two other fighters, one of which went on to land on Kuznetsov and the second landed at a friendly airbase in Syria.

MiG-29K. Via Wikipedia Commons.

The loss of the MiG represents a six percent loss of airpower for the Kuzetsov, which was supposedly loaded with fifteen fighters of all types, including four MiG-29KUBRs, Su-33 air superiority fighters, and Su-25UTG ground attack aircraft. A U.S. Navy carrier, by contrast, carries 44 F/A-18 E/F Super Hornet fighters.

The loss of a fighter on the first day of operations is the latest embarrassment for the Kuznetsov task force, which was seen billowing black smoke on its voyage and was accompanied by a tugboat in case the carrier broke down. The ship was also denied entry in Spanish territory and Malta over concerns that it would contribute to the bombing of the Syrian city of Aleppo. Mig-29s were indeed allegedly seen over Aleppo the day the fighter crashed but it's not known if these were from Kuznetsov or were from the Russian Aerospace Forces based in Syria itself.