Brakes Fail on Polish MiG-29 During Landing

In Malbork, northern Poland, the brakes of a MiG-29 fighter jet failed during landing.

TVN24 reported on the incident on the evening of August 12.

Due to a malfunction, the fighter jet suffered damage to two tires, but the pilot managed to keep the aircraft under control and complete the landing. No one was injured.

Polish Armed Forces Operational Command confirmed the occurrence of a dangerous situation.

The incident took place as a pair of fighter jets returning to the airfield from a training flight. The second Polish MiG-29, in accordance with procedure, landed at an alternate airfield.

The incident will be investigated by the State Commission on Aircraft Accidents Investigation.

Last week, Ukraine’s ambassador to Poland, Vasyl Bodnar, stated that Warsaw has a clear intention to transfer four MiG-29 fighter jets to Ukraine after they are decommissioned by the Polish Air Force. Ukrainian experts inspected the fighter jets and concluded that they require extensive and costly modernization.

Bodnar noted that demand for these aircraft exists not only in Ukraine. An unnamed country — presumably Bulgaria — had previously asked Warsaw about such a proposal.

Polish MiG-29s for Ukraine

At the end of last year, Poland’s Ministry of National Defence and General Staff of the Polish Armed Forces announced plans to transfer some of the MiG-29 fighter jets still in service with the Polish Air Force to Ukraine.

According to the initial agreements, in exchange for the aircraft, Poland was to gain access to Ukrainian technologies in the field of unmanned systems, which are actively being developed and undergoing combat testing on the front lines.

At the time, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky stressed that the fighter jets were important for Ukraine, as Ukrainian pilots already had significant experience operating them. According to him, “the issue is not a shortage of aircraft, but a shortage of pilots.”

In June, the Polish side reported that the transfer of the aircraft had not yet taken place due to an unresolved issue regarding the transfer of technology.