The Ukrainian defense forces have shot down a Russian Su-34 fighter-bomber aircraft in eastern Ukraine's Luhansk Oblast. Andrii Kovaliov, spokesperson for the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, said this on Ukrainian television on 30 January, according to Ukrinform. Kovaliov added that the Russian Su-34 aircraft was downed on 29 January.
Earlier, on 14 January, Ukrainian forces hit Russia's valuable A-50 early warning and control aircraft and IL-22 airborne control center, with the former crashing near Berdiansk, killing its crew and personnel, and the latter sustaining damage but managing to land at a civilian airfield. This attack marked the Russian Air Force's most devastating loss since the start of the all-out war.
Late last year, Ukraine reportedly used the Patriot SAM system to ambush and destroy three Russian Su-34 fighter-bombers in southern Ukraine.
According to the estimations of Ukraine's General Staff, Russia lost 332 fixed-wing assets and 324 helicopters in Ukraine as of 30 January 2024:
Read also:
- Russian IL-76 aircraft crashes in Belgorod Oblast, Russia claims it carried Ukrainian POWs
- ISW: Russian air operations drop over Azov Sea after Ukraine strikes hit radar plane, command aircraft
- Russia reportedly loses valuable AWACS A-50 aircraft over Azov Sea (updates)
- Frontline report: Ukraine moves Patriot system closer to frontline, resulting in three Russian aircraft downed
