On April 28, 2025, an incident occurred in the Cherkasy region of Ukraine, as a result of which an F-16 fighter of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) mistakenly shot down its own Su-27 aircraft, mistaking it for a Russian Geran-2 drone. The Su-27 pilot managed to eject and, according to the Air Force of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, is in a stable condition, receiving medical assistance. An investigation into the causes of "friendly fire" has already been launched by a special commission.

Video footage of the moment the already damaged Su-27 fighter jet crashed appeared online, and experts doubted that the Ukrainian fighter jet was shot down by a missile, since the damage sustained by the fighter jet was not critical, which gave rise to the theory that the plane could have been damaged by debris from a drone.

The Ukrainian side has not yet commented on the version about the destruction of its fighter by friendly fire from an F-16.