Ethiopia Receives First Batch of Su-35 Fighter Jets From Russia

Russian company Rosoboronexport has delivered the first batch of Su-35 fighter jets to the Ethiopian Air Force.

Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed announced this on October 28.

According to him, the delivery was carried out in accordance with a prior agreement with the Russian government.

The first batch consists of two aircraft, which will supplement the Ethiopian Air Force’s existing fleet of Su-27 and Su-30 fighter jets.

Reports that the country had ordered modern fighter jets emerged after the hacker group Black Mirror published documents in October 2025 that it claimed had originated from Russia’s state-owned defence conglomerate Rostec.

The documents mentioned a contract reportedly signed in 2022 for the delivery of six Su-35 fighter jets to Ethiopia.

Meanwhile, when announcing the receipt of the aircraft, Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed stated that 12 Su-35 fighter jets would be delivered.

“In accordance with our prior agreement with the Russian government, we have today taken delivery of the first twelve Su-35 4++ Generation fighter jets,” the prime minister said.

The published photos show Su-35 fighter jets with a distinctive camouflage scheme and the internal tactical numbers ‘2551’ and ‘2552.’ The Ethiopian aircraft’s camo resembles that previously used on Su-35s that were reportedly intended for delivery to Egypt.

No aircraft previously operated by the Ethiopian Air Force had been observed in a similar paint scheme. However, according to Reuters, Russia’s state arms exporter Rosoboronexport told the outlet about the first batch of two Su-35 fighter jets being delivered that day.

Abiy Ahmed also announced that Ethiopia would receive four batteries of long-range S-400 SAM systems. However, the prime minister did not disclose the delivery timeline or the value of the deal.

Militarnyi previously reported that in January 2024, the Ethiopian Air Force received its first batch of Russian Su-30 fighter jets of an unknown variant. The aircraft were assigned tail numbers ‘2401’ and ‘2402.’ One theory is that Ethiopia might have acquired former Indian Su-30Ks.