Air War in Ukraine
This photo shows the training of Ukrainian pilots on the Mirage 2000-5F still in France, released by the French armed forces. The author of the article is aware of two videos of Mirage fighters already flying over Ukraine, but they are of very poor quality and only reveal that the external fuel tanks under the wings are painted yellow on the underside.
First Mirage 2000 Loss
Text: Miro Barič
On both the battlefield and the political front, many events took place during the observed period, but the overall situation between July 1 and July 31, 2025 did not change significantly. The Ukrainian Air Force suffered another notable loss when it lost its first Mirage 2000-5F fighter in an accident. France had supplied these aircraft between February and March of this year.
Let‘s begin with a brief description of political developments, which are closely linked to the battlefield situation, as will be demonstrated further by several examples. At the beginning of the observed period, American President Donald Trump confirmed that arms deliveries to Ukraine had indeed been halted in June. This was a decision made by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. The halted deliveries included key equipment such as missiles for Patriot air defense systems, Stinger missiles, rockets for HIMARS systems, and 155 mm artillery ammunition. President Trump reversed this decision and resumed deliveries, but with one condition. The weapons were to be purchased by European countries and then delivered to Ukraine. Germany already agreed to supply Kyiv with two additional Patriot systems, and later Norway announced it would help Berlin pay for them.
The American President also began losing patience with his Russian counterpart Putin. After a phone call with him, Trump expressed disappointment and later gave Russia fifty days to agree to a ceasefire, otherwise he would impose tariffs as high as one hundred percent on states that continued buying oil and gas from Moscow. At the end of the observed period Trump further shortened this ultimatum to ten days. The result was a meeting in Alaska, where Putin came to meet Trump. This summit took place the following month, but since it followed directly from these events, it is mentioned here. It can be said that it brought no tangible results, and from the Kremlin’s side it was again only a delaying tactics and a time-stretching game.
On the battlefield, the situation did not change much. Russia continued trying to attack and managed to advance, but only slowly and at the cost of heavy losses. This was true in particular in the Pokrovsk direction. In contrast, in the Sumy region of Ukraine the Russian offensive potential was exhausted and Ukrainian armed forces slowly advanced back toward the border.
Sad records
July in Ukrainian skies brought another sad record. The number of Russian drone attacks on Ukrainian cities was the highest since the start of the invasion, and the figure had been increasing for three months in a row. During the observed period Russia launched a total of 6,297 drones, which was fifteen percent more than the previous month. In addition, in July Russia fired 198 missiles and cruise missiles, the second highest number this year after June.
In the night of Friday July 4, the Russians broke a record for the first time in this period when they launched 539 Shahed kamikaze drones and 11 missiles and cruise missiles at Ukraine. The main target was Kyiv, where even the building of the Polish consulate was damaged. This was also the first of the political connections mentioned earlier – the strike came only a few hours after the phone call between Putin and Trump and was probably meant as a show of force. The very next night, on Saturday July 5, a Russian strike on Odessa also damaged the building of the Chinese consulate.
The new record lasted only a few days, and during the night of Wednesday July 9 the Russians broke it again. They sent 728 drones and 13 missiles and cruise missiles at Ukraine, aiming mainly at Lutsk and Zhytomyr. Ukrainian air defense shot down 303 drones and seven cruise missiles, and jammers disabled another 415 drones. Another large attack came on the night of Saturday July 12 and targeted western Ukraine, especially Lviv, Lutsk and Chernivtsi. Altogether 623 drones and other projectiles were launched. In contrast, during the night of Sunday July 13 everything was quiet. There was not a single drone or missile in the air. Ukraine had last experienced such a night on May 8, but during the day the Russians compensated for this and launched 60 Shahed drones.
When Trump threatened tariffs on states that continued trading with Russia, the response came during the night of Wednesday July 16 with an attack of 400 drones against targets across Ukraine. The defense shot down 198 drones and jammers disabled another 145, while the rest struck Kharkiv, Vinnytsia, Kryvyi Rih and other cities. On Tuesday July 29 Russian strikes killed 25 people and injured more than 50. The worst incident was at Bilenke prison in the Zaporizhzhia region, where 16 inmates died. A strike on a hospital in Dnipropetrovsk region killed three people including a pregnant woman, and in Kharkiv region five people were killed when the Russians attacked civilians waiting in line for humanitarian aid.
The worst attack in terms of consequences came at the very end of the observed period. During the night of Thursday July 31 the Russians sent 309 Shahed drones and eight Iskander missiles at Kyiv. Ukrainian air defense destroyed 288 drones and three missiles, but explosions on the ground killed 31 people and injured 159. Among the victims were children – two were killed and 16 were injured. In this last attack on Kyiv the Russians also used, according to the Ukrainian side, Shahed drones with jet engines. These are faster and can carry more explosives. It is clear that such drones are causing Ukraine increasingly serious problems. That is why in its own strikes on Russian territory during this period Ukraine focused on the supply chain for Shaheds. This was not only the factory producing them in Tatarstan but also plants producing electronics or chemicals needed for making drones or their explosives. Russian oil infrastructure was also an important target, and attacks against it intensified again.
Among strikes directly related to the fighting at the front, two were well documented. On Thursday July 3 Ukrainian drones destroyed a Russian ammunition depot in Khartsyzk in occupied Donetsk region. Its explosion was recorded on several videos. The day before, on Wednesday July 2, Ukrainian missiles eliminated the command post of Russia’s 155th Guards Naval Infantry Brigade in the village of Korenevo in Kursk region. This once-elite unit had already been practically destroyed in the fighting in Ukraine several times and had to be rebuilt repeatedly. Now its command was eliminated. The Ukrainian strike killed Major General Mikhail Gudkov, Colonels Nariman Shikhaliev, Leonid Bashkhardin and Sergei Ilyin, Major Shamil Murtazaliev and Captain Alexander Shipunov. These are only the names that are known. According to an obituary published by a Russian veterans’ organization, more than 10 officers were killed in this strike.
At the same time the Russians also managed something similar. In a strike on the town of Hulyaipole in Zaporizhzhia region Colonel Serhiy Zacharevych of Ukraine’s 110th Mechanized Brigade was killed along with at least one other officer, Dmytro Romaniuk.
The Ukrainian Air Force published a series of photos showing Su-27 fighters being prepared for a combat mission.
F-16 maintenance
During this period two reports also emerged concerning Ukrainian F-16 fighters. The “Come Back Alive” organization, with the support of the government company Ukrnafta, developed a mobile complex accompanying F-16s for the Ukrainian Air Force These aircraft must frequently move between air bases to avoid unwanted Russian attention, but not every base is equipped to service them and ready for combat. Now, when an F-16 arrives at a new base, such a mobile complex can be waiting. It includes a truck with a trailer for mission planning and pilot briefing. The system also includes mobile equipment for attaching weapons under the F-16’s wings. Previously, loading a single piece of ordnance required 10 to 12 people; with this equipment, three are sufficient.
A less positive report was that a traitor was operating within the ranks of the Ukrainian Air Force, attempting to provide Russia with information to help plan attacks on F-16 and Mirage 2000 bases. Ukraine’s Security Service arrested him at the end of the observed period. He faces the life sentence.
A Ukrainian F-16 fighter and the mobile complex that assists with aircraft maintenance during relocations between airfields.
Russian losses
During the observed period Russia verifiably lost three aircraft. None of these losses occurred during combat flights, and only one was directly connected to the war against Ukraine. The first two losses were accidents. On Tuesday July 1 a Su-34 fighter-bomber crashed near the Savasleyka airbase in Nizhny Novgorod region. The aircraft was on a training flight when its left landing gear failed to deploy during approach. The crew was ordered to eject, which they did. The navigator, Major Alexander Pavlov, however, suffered injuries during ejection and died. The accident may have been linked to greater wear and poorer maintenance due to combat operations in Ukraine. As a reminder, at the end of the previous period Russian aviation lost several Su-34s destroyed or damaged in a Ukrainian strike on Marinovka airbase near Volgograd. Within a single week it lost six of these aircraft.
Another accident occurred on Sunday July 6 deep inside Russian territory, near Kashtak airfield in Chita district of Zabaykalsky Krai. During a hard emergency landing, an An-2 bi-plane was irreparably damaged. The pilot and ten paratroopers were on board. Nine of the eleven people were injured. Why is this relevant to the war in Ukraine? Because the aircraft belonged to the paramilitary DOSAAF organization, established back in Soviet times, with the mission of “education for homeland defense.”
The third confirmed loss occurred in the night from Friday July 25 to Saturday July 26 at Armavir airbase in Krasnodar Krai. Saboteurs set fire to a Su-27UB. The fire damaged its tail section and probably also its engines.
A Russian Su-34 photographed on July 1 at the Savaslejka air base with one landing gear leg undeployed.
Major Alexander Pavlov was killed on July 1 in the crash of the Su-34.
Major General Mikhail Gudkov died on July 2 in a Ukrainian strike on the headquarters of the Russian 155th Guards Naval Infantry Brigade.
An An-2 belonging to the DOSAAF organization, which crashed on July 6 during paratrooper training.
A satellite image from Maxar dated August 20, 2023 shows the An-72 stored at the Odessa aircraft plant. It was destroyed at this location during the night of July 18.
Ukrainian losses
Ukraine lost five aircraft during this period. This happened twice during the Russian strikes on Ukrainian air bases. On Saturday July 12 a turboprop An-26 belonging to Ukraine’s State Emergency Service, which manages the country’s rescue forces, burned after a Russian strike on Chernivtsi International Airport. During the night of Friday July 18 a Russian strike targeted the Odessa Aviation Plant. Several buildings and hangars were destroyed or damaged. An An-72 was hit as well, however she had been standing unused since 2021 and was clearly not airworthy.
A much more serious loss befell the Ukrainian Air Force on Tuesday July 22 in Volyn region. After taking off for a combat mission, the pilot of a Mirage 2000-5F reported a critical failure of onboard instruments and ejected. The aircraft fell into a swampy area, leaving only a large crater that quickly filled with water. The pilot landed safely by parachute and was soon found by a search and rescue team. His condition was reported as stable. The State Bureau of Investigation began an inquiry into the accident. At this point there was also a positive development for Ukraine. France had originally planned to supply ten Mirage 2000-5Fs, but most recently doubled this number to twenty. It is not yet clear when all the promised aircraft will be delivered. France has a total of twenty-eight aircraft of this version.
The Ukrainian Army Aviation suffered two further losses. Both concerned the deployment of light aircraft against drones. The first was announced on Thursday July 3, but most likely occurred earlier. A tactical flight group of the Civil Air Patrol lost an aircraft in Kharkiv region. The crew survived without injuries. The aircraft type was not disclosed. In Dnipropetrovsk region, on Friday July 18, two airmen from the Odesa branch of the Civil Air Patrol, which was part of the 11th Army Aviation Brigade, were killed. The aircraft type was again not disclosed, but the patch of the unit shows a Yak-52. The pilot and unit commander, Colonel Konstantin Oborin, and the gunner Senior Sergeant Roman Kutsenko were killed. This happened during a combat mission repelling a Russian air attack. Their Yak-52 most likely fell victim to the close explosion of a Russian drone.
After the Mirage 2000-5F crashed into swampy ground on July 22, only a crater remained, which quickly filled with water.
Colonel Konstantin Oborin, the pilot who died on July 18 during a combat mission flying Yak-52.
Gunner Roman Kutsenko, who died together with Colonel Oborin on July 18.
The patch of the 11th Army Aviation Brigade, the unint in which Oborin and Kutsenko served.
Turbo Bumblebee with anti-drone rockets
The last two incidents underline just how dangerous the work of hunting Russian drones is. One of the pilots of the Ukrainian Civil Air Patrol with the callsign “Stalker” revealed that over seven months his aircraft had been damaged as many as 43 times. Each time, however, it was repaired and returned to action. It is certainly not the kind of activity insurance companies would be happy about. Ukraine, however, must search for and test every possible way to combat the threat of kamikaze drones. Russia is also constantly improving its Shaheds. Lately, they fly higher, carry larger explosive payloads, and above all, attack in ever greater numbers each month.
One option is to give light aircraft the ability to strike Shaheds from a greater distance. This is how the agricultural aircraft of Czech (or Czechoslovak) origin, the Z-137T, has appeared in Ukrainian skies. It is a successor to the famous family that began with the Z-37 Čmeliak (Bumblebee). The aircraft was captured on a short video. It sports green-gray camouflage and two white stripes on the rear fuselage, which are the Army Aviation markings. Under the center section, there are two additional fuel tanks, and two R-73 missiles under the wings. At the location of the missile pylons, two dark bands are visible encircling the wing, apparently reinforcements of the skin.
The R-73 missiles use infrared guidance with a range of 30 to 40 kilometers depending on the version. On the Z-137T they are mounted on AKU-73 pylons. The aircraft itself has no radar or other equipment for targeting drones. The pilot must therefore be guided into the proper area by a ground control station. From there the missile takes over, being fully autonomous and able to find the target on its own. For this, however, it requires electrical power. It is therefore likely that the Z-137T has been fitted with an additional generator for this purpose.
Voices were raised questioning the authenticity of the video on the grounds that the Z-137T lacks standard camouflage and the blue-yellow identification markings used at the front. It can only be said that none of the known photos of Yak-52 aircraft show a standard camouflage pattern either. They usually retain their original civilian paint, and some have even sported attempts at the wild camouflage schemes. The blue-yellow identification elements required in the combat zone are carried sparingly on Yaks as well, usually on the rudder only. These light aircraft do not operate near the frontline, but rather fight Russian drones in the interior.
The use of R-73 missiles has also been questioned, as they are allegedly too expensive to be wasted on Shaheds. Yet as shown in the previous examples, firing from close range at a drone carrying tens of kilograms of explosives can lead to the loss of the aircraft, and sometimes, tragically, of its crew. This applies not only to the Yak-52. Ukraine, lacking sufficient ammunition for ground-based air defense, has been forced to employ jet fighters against drones, and in the past has lost several MiG-29s and Su-27s this way. Even two of the four F-16s lost were destroyed by debris from downed drones.
For this reason, the use of R-73s fired from a greater distance is logical from a safety standpoint. Moreover, R-73s are not financially costly for Ukraine. These are older Soviet-made missiles of which it still has a considerable stockpiles. Over the past three years there has been no situation in which Russian and Ukrainian aircraft approached closely enough for the R-73 to be used in air-to-air combat. The lifespan of these missiles is not endless, so it is better to “spend” them on fighting drones. This is not wasteful: a Shahed can hit a valuable target, and it is far preferable to use such a missile than to allow the destruction of a power plant or industrial facility.
The Ukrainian Armed Forces have long employed R-73 missiles from various adapted ground launchers. The Z-137T is something similar, only much more mobile. It can also take off from unimproved grassy fields, making it more flexible and harder to destroy on the ground. Its use can also ease the burden in drone defense on jet fighters, whose operation is far more expensive.
Z-137T with a pair of R-73 missiles. Notice the dark band on the wing – this is probably a reinforcement of the skin.
The explosion of a drone next to the wing of a Yak-52. From the scale of the blast it is clear that hunting Shaheds is a dangerous business.
Some Yak-52 aircraft still fly in civilian paint schemes while hunting drones.
Other Yak-52s have received various wild camouflage patterns.
This MiG-29UB recently appeared in a Ukrainian Air Force video. On its nose it carries kill markings of three drones and one cruise missile. In the video it has four R-73 missiles under its wings. Aircraft like the Z-137T could help relieve jet fighters in this role.