July 30, 2009: There are currently pictures making the rounds on the net showing a Russian warplane (apparently an Su-27) flying without its canopy, and then having the guy in the back seat eject. The aircraft is sometimes described as an Su-35, but if you check the details, you'll note that it was an original Su-35 (not the current "F-22ski" Su-35), which was an improved Su-27 that was prototyped, but never entered service.

All this was filmed in southern Russia for a 2005 Russian movie Zerkalnie Voyni (Mirror Wars), an espionage movie told from the Russian point of view (the Americans are the bad guys.) The movie has some poor special effects, so it was apparently cheaper to rent one of those Su-35s and two adventuresome pilots to do the stunts for real. Oh, and the movie sucked. They apparently spent more money on aircraft rentals than they did on the script and the supporting cast. The movie was produced by Kremlin Films. Makes sense.

Flying a jet fighter without the canopy is not unusual, as it happens occasionally after accidents. There are some pretty scary videos out there showing very torn up (from mid-air collisions) aircraft struggling to stay in the air, and even landing.