HISTORY

Su-24M of the Ukrainian Air Force. The yellow coloring of the lower surfaces is to prevent firing from their own ranks.

Shots of the wreckage

of a Ukrainian Mi-8

helicopter from the

deck of another

chopper of this type.

Damaged Ukrainian Mi-8MSB-V in digital

camouflage during ground transport.

Sequence of shots of a Ukrainian Tu-143 drone launching from an SPU-143 wheeled launcher.

Su-24M, carrying registration RF-93799 and bort

number “blue 45”, was hit above Bakhmut by the

portable missiles. Its crew members belonged to

the so-called Wagner mercenary group. Despite

the number thirteen in the date, the aviators were

lucky and managed to land the burning aircraft

at their home base. On February 23, the pilot of

the Su-25SM carrying registration RF-95143 and

bort number “yellow 37”, was not so lucky. On his

return from the combat mission, he crashed near

the village of Orekhovo in the district of Valyuki

in Belgorod area. The cause of the crash was

supposed to be a mechanical failure. The pilot from

the 266th Squadron of the Attack Aviation did not

survive.

Ukrainian losses

During the reported period, loss of one Ukrainian

April 2023

aircraft was confirmed. On February 13 near

Pishchanka in Vinnytsa area, while intercepting

the Iranian-made drones Shahed-136, a Mig-29

was destroyed. Its pilot, Lieutenant Dmytro

Shklyarevskyi saved himself on the ejection seat

but suffered injuries and had to be hospitalized.

From the hospital the pilot wrote that he had

survived by a miracle and an operation was

awaiting him. On the same day, the information

appeared in the Ukrainian media that after four

months long recovery Major Vadym Voroshylov

from 204th Brigade of the Tactical Aviation returned

to the duty. We wrote about him in the previous

parts of this series. On October 12 he shot down

five Shahed-136 drones and the debris from the last

one hit his Mig-29 and he also had to eject. Hanging

on the parachute he took a selfie of his bloodied

face – in this way he wanted to check his wounds.

Also, the images of the Ukrainian Mi-8, hit under

unknown circumstances in the previous period,

appeared. First, on February 13, an image of the

Mi-8MSB-V sporting digital camouflage and bort

number “yellow 88”, was published. The fuselage

of the damaged helicopter was filmed during its

ground transportation. Immediately next day, on

February 14, the video of another Mi-8MSB-V wreck

carrying digital camouflage, appeared. The wreck,

lying in the snow-covered countryside, was filmed

from the board of another Mi-8. No further details

are known at this time.

Equipment deliveries

On February 21, the Ukrainian military intelligence

service GRU published the photograph of the

first Black Hawk helicopter in its service. Based

on the coloration it was determined that it was

INFO Eduard

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