Ukraine has said it has shot down two prized Russian warplanes in what would amount to the most successful attack on Kremlin aircraft since the beginning of Vladimir Putin’s invasion.
General Valery Zaluzhny, commander-in-chief of Ukraine’s armed forces, said on Monday morning that a Russian A-50 spy plane, worth more than £250 million, had been destroyed in overnight strikes in the southern occupied territories, while an IL-22 command aircraft had been hit off the Crimean coast.
“Ukraine’s Air Force destroyed an enemy A-50 long-range radar detection aircraft and an enemy IL-22 air control centre,” Gen Zaluzhny wrote on the Telegram messaging app.
“I am grateful to the Air Force for the perfectly planned and executed operation in the Azov Sea region!”
Kyrylo Budanov, Ukraine’s chief of military intelligence, later told the Financial Times that the A-50 was shot down and exploded, while the Il-22 was badly damaged.
“Unfortunately for us, [the Il-22] managed to make an emergency landing in Anapa,” Mr Budanov said, referring to a small Russian coastal town to the east of Russian-occupied Crimea.
While not yet independently confirmed, it would make the first time an A-50 plane has been destroyed by Ukrainian forces. It first came into service near the end of the Soviet era and is a large Airborne Early Warning and Control aircraft that can scan an area several hundred kilometres across for enemy aircraft, ships and missiles.
Natalia Humeniuk, spokesperson for Ukraine’s southern military command, told a briefing that Russia had used the plane extensively to prepare for and conduct long-range missile strikes on Ukraine.
“We expect such a strike [on the A-50] to be fairly painful and, at least, to delay powerful missile strikes,” she said.
Some Russian military bloggers said the downing of the A-50 would be a huge loss for Russia’s air force, since there was a limited number of the planes in service.
“It will be another dark day for the Russian Aerospace Forces and Air Defense,” wrote Rybar, or Mikhail Zvinchuk, a blogger with nearly 1.2 million subscribers that supports and provides running commentary on Russia’s war in Ukraine.
“There are not many A-50s. And the specialists operating them are generally rare. If an aircraft of this type is hit, the crew will not be able to escape.”
In November, the British Ministry of Defence (MoD) reported that Russia were likely to “accept more risk by flying [the A-50s] closer to the frontline” to capitalise on the aircraft’s superior scanning abilities. Russia’s MoD said early last year that they had deployed an upgraded A-50U in Ukraine.
A military sources told Ukraine’s public broadcaster that the aircraft was hit near the coastal village of Kyrylivka by the Sea of Azov, just over 100 miles from the nearest Ukrainian soldiers. Footage published by Gen Zaluznhy, allegedly of the plane’s flight path, also showed the aircraft disappearing near Kyrylivka.
The sources said the plane was shot down shortly after taking off at 9.10pm local time. The Il-22 was allegedly hit 10 minutes later.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov, when asked about the strikes, said he knew nothing of the reports, but a number of Russian military bloggers spoke beyond the influencial Rybar, spoke of the incident. Fighterbomber, believed to be a pilot in the Russian air force, described the incident as a “tragedy”.
He added: “We most likely will not know who is to blame for the death of the pilots.”
Another channel suggested the plane that was hit was the RF-50610, which is an updated A-50U, of which there are only eight in existence, according to Rob Lee, an expert on Russian defence policy.
Meanwhile, footage posted on Monday afternoon appeared to confirm the damage sustained by the second Russian warplane.
