Ukraine says it downed Russian Su-35. Replacing it won’t be easy

Ukraine's Air Force said it shot down a Russian Su-35 multirole fighter on 8 July. The Air Force reported the shootdown in the eastern direction. No imagery of the downed aircraft has been published, and the claim has not been independently verified.

The Su-35 (NATO code Flanker-E) is Russia's most advanced 4th-generation multirole fighter. Russia entered its full-scale war in February 2022 with around 100 Su-35s and had lost eight in 45 months of fighting by December 2025.

If confirmed, this would be at least the ninth Su-35 loss of the war. Russia's small Su-35 fleet is difficult to replace, as Russian factories ordered 12 Su-35s in 2024 and delivered only 10, according to the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI).

Ukraine has been hitting Russian aviation supply chains as well as aircraft. In 2025, Ukrainian Flamingo cruise missiles struck the Skif-M facility in Belgorod with four cruise missiles, all four confirmed hits by satellite imagery. Skif-M supplies specialized tooling — drills, cutters, and inserts — used to machine the advanced alloys and composites in Su-35 and Su-57 production.

Su-35 program has been rebuilt twice since 1990s

The Su-35 traces back to a Sukhoi Design Bureau program that further evolved the Su-27, according to ArmyInform. The prototype T-10M-1 first flew on 28 June 1988, and the first serial aircraft flew on 1 April 1992. Twelve prototypes were produced in the early 1990s before the program was suspended in favor of the Su-37.

Russia restarted Su-35 development in 2005 with the updated designation Su-35BM. The serial variant currently in service with Russia's Aerospace Forces is the Su-35S.

Ukraine's aerial exchange has intensified

The claim lands during a period of intense aerial exchange. Ukraine lost three MiG-29 fighters on 27 June, with one shot down in the air and two destroyed on the ground at Voznesensk airfield. Ukrainian drones damaged at least seven Russian warplanes at the Saky airbase in occupied Crimea on 2-3 July, per acting Security Service Head Yevhenii Khmara.

Russia struck Kyiv on 2 July with nearly 500 drones and 77 missiles, killing at least 30 people. Zelenskyy told the NATO Defense Industry Forum in Ankara on 7 July that current Patriot production is not enough to meet the growing demand for protection against ballistic missiles, per ABC News.