Sukhoi Su-24s returned to service

MOSCOW, Sept. 14 (UPI) -- The Russian air force Friday said it had returned its Su-24 tactical bombers in the Far East to service.

The aircraft operating in Russia's Far East military region bordering China and North Korea and close to Japan were grounded last month after one of them crashed. The accident was attributed to technical failure, a Russian air force spokesman said Friday, according to a report carried by RIA Novosti.

RIA Novosti said one of the Sukhoi Su-24 Fencers crashed on Aug. 23 70 miles southeast of the Khurba airfield, in the Khabarovsk Territory in Russia's Far East. There were no casualties as both the pilots in the aircraft successfully ejected, the report said.

"After a brief suspension caused by a Su-24 crash in the Khabarovsk Territory, all flights of tactical bombers in the Far East have been resumed without restrictions," Russian air force spokesman Alexander Drobyshevsky said, according to the report.

RIA Novosti described the Su-24 as "a two-seater, twin-engine strike aircraft similar to NATO's Tornado and Mirage 2000 planes."

"The plane has been in service with the Russian Air Force since the mid-1970s, and in recent years Russia has gradually been phasing out the planes, which have a patchy safety record," the Russian news agency said.

RIA Novosti noted that in 2006, Su-24 Fencers were grounded twice following three crashes in different regions of Russia. Two pilots were killed in a crash in western Russia in July 2006.