Four Su-27 aircraft of the Ukrainian Air Force (UAF) were shot down today in a dogfight with Russian jets near Zhytomyr while one Su-25 was shot down by air defense systems in the Nizhyn area.
The Russian Ministry of Defense (MoD) spokesperson Major General Igor Konashenkov said in a briefing in Moscow today that the air defense troops also destroyed the Mi-8 helicopter of the Ukrainian Air Force, as well as the Bayraktar TB-2 unmanned aerial vehicle today.
The fate of the pilots of the Su-27 and other downed aircraft is not known.
After today’s air battle, “Destroyed: 69 aircraft on the ground and 21 aircraft in the air, 748 tanks and other armored fighting vehicles, 76 multiple launch rocket systems, 274 field artillery and mortar guns, 532 units of special military vehicles, as well as 59 unmanned aerial vehicles,” Konashenkov said at a briefing.
However there was no comments from Ukraine government regarding the loss of its four Su-27 nor any information regarding the “air battle.” It may be noted that Russia claims of complete destruction of the UAF’s airfields. In this senario, the place of take off of the UAF’s Su-27 was not revealed.
Ukraine Brings down 4 Russian Helicopters on March 4-5
Ukrainian Armed Forces shot down four enemy helicopters, in the Mykolaiv Region according to the Head of the Mykolaiv Regional Administration, Vitaly Kim who reported that three Russian military helicopters had been shot down in the region, local media reported.
In another dramatic incident, a man portable air defense system brought down a Russian Mi-35 attack helicopter near Kyiv which is seen exploding in a ball of fire.
A video of the incident is going around social media.
