Illustrative image. (Ukrainian Air Force)
The Ukrainian Air Force (UAF) acknowledged on June 16 that one of its remaining Soviet-made Su-24M fighter bombers had crashed in the west of the country.
The fighter bomber, a part of the 7th Tactical Aviation Brigade “Petro Franko,” was flying on a mission over the Khmelnytskyi region when it fell down, the air force said in a brief statement, adding that pilot and co-pilot were both killed in the crash.
Not including the last crash, the UAF has lost at least 24 Su-24Ms since the start of the Russian special military operation, and that’s according to Wikipedia’s list of aviation shootdowns and accidents which is based on visual evidence or official confirmations only.
Around a dozen are reported to be still in service. However, the real number is likely much lower, as Ukraine is likely struggling to maintain the fighter bombers with limited spare parts left from the Soviet era.
It’s worth noting that Ukrainian Su-24Ms have been modified to launch the Franco-British Storm Shadow stand-off land-attack cruise missile.
As usual, the UAF didn’t provide any details on the causes of the latest crash, which usually suggest that the warplane was shot down.
Ukraine has lost many warplanes deep inside its territory to Russian long-range anti-aircraft fire, specifically the S-400 long-range air defense system and the R-37M beyond visual range air-to-air missile — that can be carried by the Su-35S and the Su-57. Both weapons can engage targets within a range of up to 400 kilometers.
The possibility of the Su-24M getting shot down by one of Russia’s new Geran interceptor drones, which are armed with short-range anti-aircraft missiles, can’t be also ruled out completely, although there is yet no evidence hinting in that direction.
The UAF has lost most of its combat capabilities since the start of the Russian special military operation, and despite receiving modern fighter jets from its Western backers, including American-made F-16s and French-made Mirage 2000, it remains highly inactive.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
SouthFront: Analysis and Intelligence
NOW hosted at southfront.press
Previously, SouthFront: Analysis and Intelligence was at southfront.org.
The .org domain name had been blocked by the US (NATO) (https://southfront.press/southfront-org-blocked-by-u-s-controlled-global-internet-supervisor/) globally, outlawed and without any explanation
Back before that, from 2013 to 2015, SouthFront: Analysis and Intelligence was at southfront.com
the futility of the ukraine war cabal is displayed daily