"According to the plan of the exercise, combat aircraft and air defense forces deployed in Crimea carry out air defense tasks on the peninsula, while the air forces based on the mainland airfields performs offensive actions," the statement said.
The maneuvers are being overseen by the commander the Southern Military District troops, Col. Gen. Alexander Dvornikov.
As part of the drills, S-400 air defence systems deployed to the peninsula will target a simulated enemy under the cover of aircraft.
The exercise also involves over 20 aircraft, including multirole Su-30SM fighter jets, Su-24 combat bombers and Su-25SM fighter jets.
