The worst statistics of the PCS of the Russian Federation: experts on the destruction of the Russian SU-34 near Mariupol
Considering that two days earlier, the Russian air forces lost three the same planes in the Kherson direction, such an indicator became one of the worst in terms of the losses of the PCS of the Russian Federation. This is stated in Forbes. "It is four SU-34 in three days-a weekly loss rate, which is one of the worst for the Russian Air Force for today for 22 months of a large-scale war of Russia against Ukraine," wrote observers.
According to the authors of the publication, the situation for the air and space forces of the Russian Federation can soon become worse, as Ukraine expects supply from Western allies of multi-purpose fighters F-16 Fighting Falcon. And this is all because Su-34 is emphasized in the publication, is perhaps the best Russian fighter-bomber and the only plane in the arsenal that has a combination , on the first demand.
As for the air defense systems, through which the Ukrainian forces could destroy the aircraft, the material mentions the Patriot anti-aircraft missile complex. This SCR is armed with PAC-2 GEM rockets with a range up to 160 km. "The Patriot battery, located far beyond the front line in Kherson, can easily knock the Russian bomber at the farthest point of its launch, 25 miles or so far from the target along the Dnieper," the observers suggested.
In total, during the war, Russia could lose up to 26 Su-34 units, wrote watchers, but with the advent of Western aircraft in the Armed Forces, the number of total losses of combat aircraft aviation of the Russian Federation may increase in the near future. "The Russian Air Force almost certainly seeks to minimize the further loss of these expensive and complex aircraft," said Justin Bronc, Nick Reynolds and Jack Wotling in a study of the Royal Institute of Joint Services in London.