Moment Putin fighter pilot cheats death as his own side opens fire on Su-25 jet with rocket launcher in shock near-miss

A RUSSIAN fighter pilot barely escaped death after a rocket launcher fired into the sky as an Su-25 warplane flew overhead. Extraordinary footage captured the hair-raising moment the Putin fighter flew at a low altitude and was nearly struck – by his own side. Footage shows the moment Russia came close to another friendly fire incidentEast2West East2WestThe Russian Su-25 warplane flew at a low altitude as rockets were fired into the sky[/caption] East2WestMiraculously, the Su-25 pilot survived the dramatic firing by his own side[/caption] The 13-second clip showed one rocket launch from a small machine on the ground, followed by many others fired in quick succession. Miraculously, the Su-25 managed to escape the relentless rockets and continue flying. Pro-war telegram channel Two Majors said: “Our warriors are people of unbridled courage. “They are in such a rush to hit the enemy, that they do not look at what is happening around them. “The footage is truly unique.” Some described the dramatic near-miss as an example of “Russian roulette”. Another comment suggested the officer who was in charge of the Grad multiple rocket launcher was now “probably either out of a job or in a jail cell”. It is unclear where exactly the plane – a subsonic, single-seat, twin-engine Su-25 – was nearly hit in the Russia-Ukraine warzone. The friendly fire incident is just the latest of many suffered by Russia of late, with the most recent known case that which killed 45-year-old Major-General Vladimir Zavadsky of Russia’s 14th Army Corps. Zavadsky was killed by one of his own landmines after being shot at with friendly mortar fire while driving a military vehicle captured from Ukrainians. In September, one of Vladimir Putin‘s prized £82million fighter jets was reportedly blown out of the sky by his own troops. The high-tech Su-35 was downed by a Russian S-300 air defence missile over the Zaporizhzhia region of Ukraine, according to various pro-war Telegram channels. Video appeared to show the moment the single-seat warjet exploded in the sky and burst into orange flames. It was not immediately clear if the pilot was able to eject, but Russian aviation Z-blogger “Fighterbomber” indicated he did not survive – and also acknowledged the loss of a valuable plane. He posted a photo of an Su-35 with the message: “Eternal flight, brother.” Earlier this year, a Russian fighter jet and a helicopter were spotted crashing as reports circulated that another two warplanes had also been downed. Footage showed an Su-34 jet and an Mi-8 chopper plummeting near a Russian town within two hours of each other. It was claimed all four aircraft were brought down by friendly fire. East2WestRussian Major-General Vladimir Zavadsky, 45, was killed by one of his own landmines after being shot at with friendly mortar fire[/caption]