Russia urgently sends Su-34 to Hmeymim after Su-24 incident
According to Al-Masdar News, the Russian Air Force has just deployed more Su-34 attack aircraft to the Syrian battlefield after the Su-24 scandal has not been resolved.
According to Syrian military sources, in this reinforcement of air power at Hmeymim, in addition to the two Su-34s, Russia also sent Tu-154M aircraft. This information has now been confirmed by both Russia and Syria, and it is said that these three aircraft arrived in Syria on a direct flight from Russia.
The source said that the addition of two Su-34s brings the total number of these Russian fighters in Syria to eight. Al-Masdar News said that the addition of two more Russian ground attack aircraft in Syria is a remarkable increase in the incredible power against jihadist groups.
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| Russian Su-34 attack aircraft. |
However, according to Arab News, this decision by Russia is related to the entire Su-24/25 squadron that is "frozen" in Syria due to a previous decision by the Russian Air Force to stop flying at the Hmeymim base.
Citing Russian military sources, Arab News revealed that since receiving the decision to stop flying with the Su-25 in early February from the Russian Air Force in Syria, the entire pair of attack aircraft deployed at the Hmeymim base has been grounded.
They are only allowed to operate in areas deemed safer. Replacing the missions of these attack aircraft in Syria are the multi-role fighters Su-30SM and Su-35S.
The information revealed by Arab News is said to be very surprising because according to Russia's statement, the Su-24/25 fighter jets were only decided to stop operating for a short time to assess the actual situation on the Syrian battlefield after the Su-25 was shot down in February 2018.
If this information is confirmed by Russia, it means that all of these attack aircraft have been grounded in Syria for more than a month.
At the time of the decision to stop flying, the Russian Air Force did not hide that it was to ensure attack power while avoiding attacks from rebels' man-portable air defense missiles (MANPADS) because these new generation fighters flew beyond the range of this type of missile.
Along with the decision to stop flying the Su-24/25, Russia also chose a safer solution: all fighter jets and helicopters must increase their flight ceiling to avoid danger when performing missions in Syria. To date, this flight ceiling is still in effect during Russia's air strikes in Syria.
According to new regulations of the Russian Air Force, all Russian planes and helicopters in Syria are only allowed to fly at a ceiling of 5,000m or higher to ensure safety while performing missions. With this ceiling, the missiles suspected of shooting down the Su-25 cannot reach.
Arab News explained that, given this reality, Russia's decision to add the Su-34 is completely understandable because this aircraft is designed to specialize in performing ground missions while flying within the range of MANPADS missiles - a capability that is not too strong in both the Su-30SM and Su-35S.