Ukrainian Air Force

[LotusOmega375D]

Just had a quick look on Wikipedia. Doesn’t look like they’ve got a lot to defend themselves with and what they do have is from the Soviet era. This could be all over very quickly…

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ukrainian_Air_Force

[LotusOmega375D]

Is it too late to send an RAF C17 back to Ukraine to collect our anti-tank missiles and launchers before they get surrendered to the Russians and analysed/reverse-engineered?

[LotusOmega375D]

Not at all, but I bet they wouldn’t say no to seeing how the West do it. Save them a few roubles too.

[LotusOmega375D]

This on BBC News homepage.

[LotusOmega375D]

Having seen the long lines of Russian convoys on satellite imagery, it would be a turkey shoot for some A10s…

Can anyone confirm that the Ukrainian Air Force is still on the attack? I would have thought that the Russians would have destroyed the Ukrainian airbases and most of the aircraft by now.

[LotusOmega375D]

With the Russians now committing troops and equipment to a 40 mile convoy travelling in broad daylight, you would think that they now believe they have total air superiority. You just wouldn’t risk it otherwise, unless the Ukrainians are laying a trap, but I doubt it sadly.

[LotusOmega375D]

It’s actually a very 20th century conflict isn’t it? WW2 tactics, freezing weather, Soviet hardware, huge convoys, overwhelming numbers of boots on ground, indiscriminate bombing, thousands of refugees and a few war crimes mixed in.

So much for all the recent Western investment in down-sizing their military and replacing it with high tech gizmos and computer geeks sat at air-conditioned desks.

[LotusOmega375D]

The article is based on a what was reported in a NATO press conference yesterday. It seems pretty certain that those earmarked aircraft won’t end up being used in Ukraine.

https://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/opinions_192582...

If true, it seems a bit hypocritical and spineless. NATO is vociferous about supplying thousands of anti-tank missiles and other land based weapons to destroy Russian tanks and kill Russian soldiers, but they won’t send over a few dozen aircraft to do likewise and help protect Ukrainian troops and civilians.

[LotusOmega375D]

Those three Ukrainian Air Force An26 transport planes are heading south-west from Poland across Germany. I wonder where they are heading?

[LotusOmega375D]

Looks like Stuttgart airport.

[LotusOmega375D]

They’re now starting to head back East from Stuttgart.

[LotusOmega375D]

Could they be going straight in?

[LotusOmega375D]

The first one dropped down below 9000ft less than 50 miles from the Ukrainian border and switched off the transponder. I really wouldn’t want to be in his shoes, let alone the poor bugger in the third one!

Edited by LotusOmega375D on Friday 4th March 15:40

[LotusOmega375D]

The second one did likewise and dropped down 50 miles from the border. I tracked him to 5800ft, but the transponder is off so that might be wrong.

[LotusOmega375D]

Third one also. Very brave crews. I hope their voyage was a safe one. So does this show that the Russians do not have air supremacy, at least over Western Ukraine, if slow unescorted transport planes (possibly full of weapons) are still able to fly in?

[LotusOmega375D]

Hasn’t the Ukrainian Army or Air Force got any missiles they can lob across the border into Russia?

[LotusOmega375D]

Indeed. That wasn’t at all popular with the West Germans, just like Greenham Common & Molesworth cruise missiles over here.

[LotusOmega375D]

They’ve just lost an An-26 flying over Southern Ukraine.

[LotusOmega375D]

Here’s a photo of the alleged crash scene. Chatter about hitting power lines, but who knows?

[LotusOmega375D]

Russians claiming to have shot down a Ukrainian Su-25 and 3 Mi-8 helicopters near Kharkiv. No confirmation of course, but shows that UAF is still active as an offensive force.