Russia’s FSB Claims Ukrainian Plot to Hijack Missile Foiled

Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) announced on Tuesday that it had thwarted what it described as a joint intelligence operation by Ukraine’s Main Directorate of Intelligence (GUR) and British agencies—including MI6 and GCHQ—to hijack a Russian MiG-31K fighter jet armed with a Kh-47M2 Kinzhal hypersonic missile.

According to the FSB, Ukrainian agents operating under British coordination allegedly contacted Russian Air Force pilots via encrypted messaging channels, offering $3 million and Western citizenship in exchange for defecting with a fully armed MiG-31K stationed in Russia’s Southern Military District.

In Response to the plot, Russia's Ministry of Defense announced that the military had launched a strike on one of the GUR's headquarters in Ukraine from which the plot was coordinated.

The plot allegedly instructed the targeted pilot to fly the aircraft toward the NATO air base in Constanța, Romania, near the Black Sea. Once inside Romanian airspace, the aircraft was to be shot down by NATO air defenses—creating the appearance of a Russian strike against a NATO member. The resulting “false flag” was reportedly intended to trigger an international incident that could justify direct Western involvement in the war.

The FSB claims the pilot reported the recruitment attempt immediately, prompting Ukrainian operatives to contact the aircraft’s navigator, who also refused the offer.

While Ukrainian officials have dismissed the allegations as “Russian propaganda,” previous incidents have shown that Kyiv has successfully recruited Russian pilots in the past. In August 2023, Capt. Maksim Kuzminov, a Russian helicopter pilot working with Ukraine’s GUR, flew a Mi-8AMTSh helicopter into Ukrainian territory. Two of his unaware crewmates were killed during the defection. Kuzminov was later relocated to Spain under protection but was assassinated there the following year.

The FSB has previously accused Ukraine of attempting to bribe or recruit Russian pilots to deliver advanced aircraft—including Su-34 fighter jets, Tu-22 bombers, and even an A-50 AWACS reconnaissance plane—to Ukrainian or NATO custody.