Ukrainian Air Defenses Shoot Down Russian Su-34 Bomber in Kursk Region

In the pre-dawn hours Wednesday, the Ukrainian forces shot down a Russian Su-34 bomber in Russia operating over the Kursk region, northeast of the Ukrainian border.

According to the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces (AFU) on Wednesday, Aug 14, “during a combat mission, the Air Defense Forces of the Ukrainian Air Force destroyed a Russian Su-34 bomber.”

The General Staff also added that “work to eliminate the occupiers, their equipment, and weaponry continues relentlessly. Together, we will win!”

The Su-34 is a Russian bomber aircraft designed for tactical and strategic bombing missions. The Su-34 can carry various types of armaments, including air-to-ground missiles (e.g., X-31, X-59), fragmentation and high-explosive bombs, and guided bombs (e.g., KAB-500).

The aircraft is equipped with advanced automatic control systems, ensuring high maneuverability and precision in hitting targets. It has electronic warfare (EW) systems for protection against missiles and air defense systems.

The Su-34 is designed to strike ground targets, including military equipment, infrastructure, buildings, bunkers, bridges, airfields, personnel, etc. The aircraft has been used in several conflicts, including the wars in Syria and Ukraine.

Additionally, last week, for the first time in history, Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) drones shot down two helicopters mid-air.

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Ukraine last week sent troops into Russia’s border region of Kursk, in the largest cross-border operation by Kyiv since Moscow launched its full-scale offensive more than two years ago.

The assault, which has sent tens of thousands of people fleeing, marked the most significant attack by a foreign army on Russian territory since World War II.

A top Ukrainian official told AFP that the operation was aimed at stretching Moscow troops and destabilizing the country after months of slow Russian advances across the front line.

The assault appeared to catch the Kremlin off guard, with Moscow’s army rushing in reserve troops, tanks, aviation, artillery and drones in a bid to quash it.

Despite the Ukrainian Ground Forces successes in the offensive against the Kursk region, the Russian forces has made significant gains on the Pokrovsk front in Ukraine’s Donetsk region, and the situation is becoming “dire,” one member of a special forces battalion told the Kyiv Post.

The city of Pokrovsk, the capital of the district of the same name, is a transportation hub located on a main road that is an important supply route for other Ukrainian outposts in the region.

The source told Kyiv Post, on condition of anonymity, that Pokrovsk city and other settlements throughout Pokrovsk district – a district in western Donetsk region composing about 1,316 square km (528 square miles) – are under constant enemy airstrikes where cluster bombs are being used.