HMEYMIM /Syria/, May 27. /TASS/. The crews of Tupolev Tu-22M3 long-range bombers performed flights over the eastern Mediterranean Sea after taking off from the Hmeymim airbase in Syria and were escorted by Su-35 fighters, the Defense Ministry of Russia reported on Thursday.

"The Tu-22M3 long-range bombers that arrived at the Russian Hmeymim airbase in the Syrian Arab Republic performed another training flights over the eastern Mediterranean escorted by Russian Su-35 fighter jets," the ministry said in a statement.

The crews of the Tu-22M3 long-range bombers gained the practical skills of accomplishing tasks in new geographical areas, the statement says.

The possibility to deploy heavy aircraft at the Hmeymim airbase has appeared after the upgrade of the second runway with the complete replacement of the runway’s surface and the installation of new lighting navigational facilities and radio-technical equipment. Now all types of planes operational in the Russian Armed Forces can perform flights from the Hmeymim airbase.

After performing their training tasks of mastering the airspace in the eastern Mediterranean, the long-range bombers will return to their home airbases in Russia, the ministry reported.