File image.
Russian air defenses shot down a Soviet-made MiG-29 fighter of the Ukrainian Air Force (UAF) over the special military operation zone, the Russian Ministry of Defense announced on May 24.
“A MiG-29 aircraft of the Ukrainian Air Force and three JDAM guided aerial bombs were shot down by air defense systems,” the ministry said in its daily briefing, adding that 174 drones and seven HIMARS precision-guided artillery rockets were also downed in the last 24 hours.
The ministry didn’t clarify where exactly the fighter jet was downed. There was no comment from the UAF, which rarely acknowledges its losses.
Some 40 MiG-29A, MiG-29S, MiG-29MU1 and MiG-29MU2 were in service with the UAF before the start of the Russian special military operation more than two years ago. Last year, Ukraine also received at least 27 MiG-29G and MiG-29AS from Poland and Slovakia. The Russian military has already shot down many of these fighter jets or destroyed them on the ground.
Most of Ukraine’s recent aerial losses, which included two American-made F-16 fighter jets, were blamed on Russian S-400 long-range air defense systems or R-37M long-range air-to-air missiles, typically launched from MiG-31, Su-35 or Su-57 fighter jets.
Despite being promised dozens of F-16 and Mirage 2000 fighter jets by Western backers, the UAF appears to be struggling to keep conducting operations.
The Russian Aerospace Forces maintain air superiority over Ukraine, with the ability to attack targets anywhere at any time with high accuracy.
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