On 15 November 2016, "Admiral Kuznetsov", took part in "a large-scale operation against the positions of terrorist groups Islamic State and Al-Nusra, in the provinces of Idlib and Homs" in Syria by launching Su-33 fighter strikes. This was the first time a Russian aircraft carrier would take part in combat operations. Russian Defence Ministry later reported that at least 30 militants had been killed as a result of those strikes, including 3 field commanders, among them" "Abul Baha al-Asfari, leader of Al-Nusra reserves in the provinces of Homs and Aleppo. Al-Asfari had also planned and led several insurgent attacks on the city of Aleppo itself. The Su-33s reportedly used precision bombs. On 3 December 2016, an Su-33 crashed into the sea after attempting to land on the carrier. The plane crashed on its second attempt to land on the aircraft carrier in good weather conditions. The pilot was safely recovered by a search and rescue helicopter. Initially it was suspected that the plane missed the wires and failed to go around, falling short of the bow of the warship, but later it was revealed that the arresting cable failed to hold the aircraft, and was damaged in the attempt. Following the two incidents, the air wing was transferred to shore at Khmeimim Air Base near Latakia, Syria to continue military operations while the carrier's arresting gear issues were addressed.