The local governor of Sevastopol, Mikhail Razvozhaev, said that “a partial explosion of ammunition” occurred after the plane went off the runway at the air base in the village of Belbek, according to Newyork Times.
The pilot safely evacuated and firefighters managed to extinguish the blaze, he wrote on the Telegram messaging app.
Videos showing a massive black cloud of smoke billowing into the sky as a backdrop to a Crimean beach spread quickly on social media.
There was nothing to immediately suggest that Ukrainian forces or guerrillas had anything to do with the explosion.
RHM/PR