Ukraine says it's downed 200 aircraft, a mark of Russian failures in the sky

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Instead of dominating the skies as expected, Russian pilots are so vulnerable to attack they're reluctant to enter Ukraine's airspace.

A Ukrainian soldier examines a fragment of a Russian Air Force Su-25 jet after a battle at the village of Kolonshchyna, Ukraine, on April 21. Russia was expected to establish air superiority in the first days of the war. But Ukraine's air defenses have been so effective that Russian pilots often fire their weapons while over Russia and never enter Ukrainian airspace. that Ukraine's military had shot down its 200th Russian aircraft — a figure few would have believed before the war began.

Here are some of the reasons Russia has so underperformed in the air, while Ukraine has overachieved. Russia's planned to secure the base, then call in many more troops to land there, with the intention of seizing Kyiv within days. The Russians are believed to have at least 15 military aircraft for every one Ukraine has, and some estimates say the balance is even more lopsided.

Q. It sounds like Ukraine is doing most of the damage from the ground with its air defense systems. Is that the case?The Americans have helped with large numbers of Stinger missiles. A single soldier fires these missiles from his shoulder, and they're very effective at taking down low-flying helicopters.

"Those are incredibly important to Ukraine," said Obrien."They don't threaten every Russian flight. They can't threaten every flight. But they can make the pilots jumpy enough that anywhere they want to fly there's a potential threat."If Russia controlled the skies, its planes could hang out, loiter over the combat zone and target Ukrainian troops whenever they spot them.

 

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