Western media talks about what Russia is preparing in the skies over Ukraine
Russian air defenses could shoot down Ukrainian military fighters almost anywhere in Ukraine, journalist David Axe writes in an article for Forbes.
“The main problem is the Russian ground-based air defense system, which forces Ukrainian military aircraft to fly at extremely dangerous altitudes almost everywhere in Ukraine, especially within a distance of about 100 kilometers from the front line, within the range of S-400 air defense missiles,” the publication said.
The article notes that when Ukraine receives AIM-120 air-to-air missiles for its F-16 fighters, it will not be able to use them effectively because they lose range when launched from low altitudes.
Last week, the head of the State Duma defense committee, Andrei Kartapolov, said that if F-16s were to take part in combat missions, both they and the airfields where they are based would become legitimate targets of the Russian military.
According to Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, Russia will consider the supply of fighter jets as a deliberate signal from NATO in the nuclear sphere. However, their appearance in Ukraine will not change the situation on the front line in any way; these planes will be destroyed, like other weapons, Lavrov stressed.
