In a rare overview of the struggle for control of the skies over Ukraine, the commander of the American air force in Europe, General James Hecker, revealed that the losses for the Russian and Ukrainian forces are high.
Hecker pointed out that Ukraine has shot down 55 Russian planes since the start of the operation Russian military operation About 7 months ago, this prevented Moscow from achieving air superiority.
However, he stressed that the small Ukrainian air force does not have the ability to control, which created a situation where the two sides (Russian and Ukrainian) were involved in a long conflict that resulted in ground losses.
He added that there have been “many casualties due to the lack of air superiority on both sides” of Russia and Ukraine and provided a rare insight into the struggle for control of the skies over Ukraine, according to the Wall Street Journal.
The Russians have changed tactics.
In parallel, the US general said that the Russian air force stumbled from the start when it failed to destroy Ukrainian air defenses and its aircraft were shot down by Ukrainian surface-to-air missile systems SA-10 and SA-11.
He explained that “this prompted the Russians to change their tactics by launching long-range cruise missiles from launchers flying over Russian territory and outside the range of Ukrainian air defenses.”
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A Ukrainian soldier examines shrapnel from a Russian Air Force plane after a battle earlier this year in the village of Kolonshina. (Pope)
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He also noted that his country was giving “time-sensitive” warnings about Russian missile attacks to help Ukrainians.
80% of Kiev’s forces are intact.
He also said that at least 80% of the aviation in Kiev is intact, noting that he speaks to the Ukrainian aviation commander every two weeks.
Interestingly, the United States encourages European countries that inherited Soviet-era weapons to send more SA-10 and SA-11 systems to Ukraine.
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A Ukrainian missile launcher bombed a Russian forces position near Lugansk in Donbass (AFP archive)
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Washington also supplied Ukraine with HARM missiles aimed at Russian radars, which the Ukrainians fired from Soviet MiG-29 and Su-27 aircraft.
But Moscow’s ability to strike Ukrainian territory with its long-range cruise missiles has been a source of great frustration for Ukrainian leaders, who have consistently demanded long-range systems, such as the Tactical Missile System, which has a range of about 190 miles.
Earlier this month, Valery Zaluzhny, supreme commander of the Ukrainian forces, and Mykhailo Zabrodsky, member of the Verkhovna Rada and senior military officer, wrote in a statement that long-range missiles would give Kiev a significant advantage in its counterattack and help accelerate the end of the conflict.
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