By Jim Morris, Warrior Vice President, News
A purported Ukrainian drone attack that hit a fifth-generation fighter jet at a base in Russia may say more about Russian air-defense capabilities than it does about anything else.
According to Ukraine’s defense intelligence agency (GUR), the country’s military has destroyed an Su-57, one of Russia’s most advanced fighters sitting at the Akhtubinsk air base in the southern Russian region of Astrakhan, roughly 370 miles from the front lines. The attack reportedly was carried out with drones.
The attack came days after the US and other allies gave Kyiv the green light to hit targets inside Russia using weapons provided by the west. Ukraine promptly used a US missile to hit Russian anti-aircraft systems inside the country.
All this raises the questions of whether Russian air defenses have been stretched to the limit by the war. Last November, a spokesman for the Ukrainian Air Force said the Kremlin has dispersed those systems to handle their primary task of defending the country’s largest cities. “Yes, we thin them out quite well,” Yuriy Ihnat told the Ukrainian news outlet Novynarnya.
The spokesman acknowledged that Russia can intercept and shoot down missiles fired from HIMARS, the US-made High Mobility Artillery Rocket System. But, he said, “we don’t just launch these missiles to be shot down…there are certain tricks and tactics used by our command and pilots.”
The Su-57 that was hit is said to be one of only a few currently in service. Russian commanders are likely to have to answer tough questions about whether the airfield was adequately defended from a drone attack – and why the plane was parked out in the open.
The Su-57 was touted as the answer to the US F-22 and F-35 stealth fighters, and was designed to eventually replace the MiG-29 and Su-27. But there’s been little indication the Russian plane is an equal match to those jets. It’s said to have technical issues, and due to sanctions, Russia has difficulty getting the semiconductors and high-end machinery it needs to build the plane.
Because of the issues, the Su-57 has played a limited role in the fighting in Ukraine. An Su-57 reportedly launched a cruise missile at a Ukrainian target in April. And the official Russian news agency TASS said that in the “SMO” (special military operation, Russia’s term for the invasion of Ukraine), the fighter “operates at a range of up to 120km, in the near future we await the arrival of air-launched missiles for high-speed air targets at a range of up to 300km.”
Still, a Ukrainian Air Force spokesman said Moscow is keeping the plane as far away as possible from the war for fear it could be shot down, which could result in Western intelligence getting a look at the fighter’s technology.
