Strana 28
air raids. Their pilots are gaining valuable
experience before participating in various
types of missions.
First F-16 Combat
F-16s are now also striking Russian
ground targets. During one mission in this
reporting period, the first encounter with
Russian fighters occurred — ending without
a shootdown but showing the F-16's
vulnerability due to the Russian air superiority.
It happened on Thursday, March 21, over
Ukraine’s Sumy region. Russian military
bloggers initially claimed to have shot down
an F-16, but later corrected the record.
According to Russian and Ukrainian sources,
two Ukrainian aircraft (likely MiG-29s) loaded
with bombs were escorted by one F-16. They
flew at low altitude to evade Russian S-400
detection.
A Su-35 was patrolling high above and fired
two long-range R-37 missiles at the group.
The Ukrainian aircraft evaded them. As they
turned to complete their bombing run, the
Su-35 relayed targeting data to an S-400
battery, which launched multiple missiles. One
locked onto the F-16. The Ukrainian pilot had
to use onboard electronic countermeasures,
flares, and extreme maneuvering to evade it.
The missile eventually ran out of fuel.
Another „Black Day“ for Russia
The Ukrainian F-16 escaped the ambush, and
Ukraine suffered no confirmed losses during
this period. However, several older losses
were confirmed. Russia, meanwhile, lost
multiple aircraft and helicopters in March.
On Tuesday, March 18, a Mi-28 helicopter
crashed during a training flight in the
Leningrad region, killing both crew members,
including Captain Ilya Vankovsky.
On Saturday, March 22, a video showed
a Su-34 making an emergency belly landing
at Lipetsk airbase after landing gear failure.
The engine caught fire after losing a nozzle.
The aircraft was likely irreparably damaged.
On Monday, March 24, a Su-25 crashed in
Russia’s Far East — the pilot ejected safely.
That same day, four Russian helicopters were
destroyed in Belgorod region when Ukrainian
HIMARS rockets struck a temporary landing
site near the town of Ivnya. A reconnaissance
drone had spotted them. The GMLRS warheads,
filled with tungsten balls, rendered the
helicopters irreparable: one Mi-8MTV-5M
(“red 54”), one Mi-28NM (“red 96”), and likely
two Ka-52s.
Older Losses Confirmed
On Wednesday, March 19, Ukraine’s military
intelligence released a video of FPV drone
attacks launched from naval drones against
targets in Crimea — including S-300 and
Pantsir-S1 systems, as well as various radar
stations. One clip shows a drone exploding
next to a parked Mi-8 helicopter at Veseloje
airbase. Satellite images confirmed the
helicopter had been stationary since at least
February 24, suggesting the strike occurred in
February and left it irreparably damaged.
According to the analysis of published
footage and satellite images by the Military
Watch website, the Mi-8 helicopter had been
parked in the same place since at least
24 February and had not moved for the entire
following month. All the other helicopters
disappeared from the base in mid-February
and did not return. Previously, several had
been present there every day. This suggests
that the attack on Veseloye airport took place
in February, and that the Mi-8 seen in the video
was so badly damaged that it was left behind.
During the period under review, various
losses on both sides were confirmed.
A view from the cockpit of a Ukrainian Mirage 2000 fighter jet,
which on March 7 shot down a Russian cruise missile.
A wreckage of the Russian Mi-28 that crashed on March 18.
Footage of an emergency landing of a Russian Su-34
at the Lipetsk airbase.
Russian Ministry of Defense photograph of a Mi-28 helicopter.
UKRAINE
INFO Eduard28
May 2025