Russian Su-35 Jet to Take Part in Turkish Airshow

A Russian Su-35 Jet with sortie markings from Syria, flew into the Istanbul Airport on Sunday to take part in the Teknofest Istanbul Aerospace and Technology Festival (TIATF) scheduled to begin Tuesday.

Besides the Su-35 jet, Russia plans to show other aircraft such as the MC-21, the Russian military and civil aircraft including the Sukhoi Superjet 100 and the Beriev Be-200 amphibious aircraft at the TIATF.

The presence of Su-35 with sortie markings indicates that the aircraft could have flown in from the Hmyemim air base in Syria which is closest to Turkey. The Su-35s are involved in the Syrian conflict to conduct bobbing runs against terrorists and to escort other Russian aircraft. Just last week there were reports that the Su-35s were used to chase away Israeli warplanes that had come in to bomb Iranian Targets inside Syria.

During his visit to MAKS-2019 air show held just outside Russian capital, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan was shown Su-57 and Su-35 jets by Russian President Vladimir Putin, to persuade Turkey to buy the planes after US removed the country from participating in the F-35 program.

Turkey’s Agriculture and Forestry Minister Bekir Pakdemirli reportedly flew to Russia last week to examine Be-200 firefighting planes. At the airshow, Erdoğan was also introduced to the Be-200, following which he is said to have asked Pakdemirli to mull over the possibility of purchasing these planes.