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On the defensive in Kharkiv, but with success in the air. Ukraine reports the downing of another Russian Su-25 fighter jet – five in May alone.
Kiev – Ukraine is currently on the defensive in Kharkiv. The advance of Vladimir Putin’s troops on the strategically important city can only be stopped with difficulty. Nevertheless, Volodymyr Selensky’s troops are also recording repeated successes. Most recently, a Russian bomber was shot out of the sky on Wednesday (May 22).
And this is not the first time. A total of five Russian Su-25s have now been shot down by the Ukrainian military – in May alone. The plane is said to have been shot down in the Donetsk region, the General Staff of the Ukrainian Army announced in an update. “According to available information, Ukrainian troops have destroyed a Russian Su-25 attack aircraft,” the report read.
Soviet-era fighter jet Su-25: old but reliable in the Ukrainian war
Previously, the Ukrainian armed forces had shot down other Russian Su-25 jets on 4, 11, 13 and 18 May, such as Kyiv Independent reported. So far, a total of 350 of the Russian aggressor’s aircraft have been taken out of the sky in the Ukraine war. Given the high number of casualties suffered by the Russian Air Force, Putin is hesitant to send the Russians’ brand new and much-praised “super jet”, the Su-57, to the front.
So the old iron will have to do for now. The Soviet-era aircraft celebrated its first flight in 1975 and is now getting on in years. The jet’s main task is to provide air support to ground troops and to eliminate certain targets. The aircraft is equipped with bombs, unguided air-to-ground missiles and guided air-to-air missiles. NATO The machine is also known as the “Frogfoot” and despite its old age and strange name, the fighter jet has so far proven to be indispensable on both sides.
Russia is considering modernizing the jet – Belarus even wants to produce new ones
Through its deployment in Ukraine, Russia even wants to overhaul and modernize the proven fighter jet. In an interview with the Russian news agency Tass Deputy General Director of the state defense company Rostec, Vladimir Artyakov, said that the Su-25 had “once again proved its effectiveness and indispensability” on the Ukrainian front. According to the director, precision weapons will be made compatible with the machine. “We will continue to improve this machine, taking into account the experience gained in its use,” Artyakov continued.
In Belarus, Russia’s closest ally in the Ukraine war, they apparently even want to produce the Su-25 again, according to the trade magazine Flight Review reported. The Belarusian ambassador in Moscow, Dmitri Krutoi, confirmed that his country would like to become an aviation supplier and even produce new aircraft itself, such as the Su-25. “The relevant documentation is currently being examined and transmitted by the Russian side,” the ambassador said. (sure)
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