Ukraine shots down 3 Russian fighter jets in one morning, says air force chief

The Sukhoi Su-34 jet fighter-bomber of Russian Air Force performs its demonstration flight at MAKS-2015 airshow near Zhukovsky, Moscow Region, Russia. aviation-images.com

• The Ukrainian airforce says it shot down three Russian fighter jets in one morning.
• The Commander of the of the Air Forces said two Su-34 and one Su-35 fighter jets were downed.
• When Ukraine triumphed with a similar streak in December, Russian forces backed down. 

Ukraine says it shot down three Russian fighter jets in a single morning.

“According to the Commander of the Air Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Lieutenant General Mykola Oleshchuk, on the morning of February 17, 2024, in the Eastern direction, units of the Air Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine destroyed three enemy aircraft at once – two Su-34 fighter-bombers and one Su-35 fighter,” the Ukrainian Army’s strategic communications department wrote on Telegram.

The Su-34 is the Russian air force’s best fighter bomber, Forbes reported, and cost $50 million each.

The Su-35 has a top speed of 1485 mph and carries a bomb load of over 17,000 pounds.

In December, Ukraine orchestrated a similar success story, with Ukrainian forces eliminating three Russian Su-34 fighter/bombers over two days.

The Institute for the Study of War reported that the Russian air force pulled back in response.

The Patriot missile system is a ground-based, mobile missile defense interceptor deployed by the United States to detect, track and engage unmanned aerial vehicles, cruise missiles, and short-range and tactical ballistic missiles. U.S. Army Security Assistance Command

The December successes were presumed to have been made possible by Western-supplied Patriot missile systems.

The surface-to-air missile systems, manufactured by the US defense contractor Raytheon, have been a formidable asset to Ukraine — so much so that one of Russia’s latest strategies has been to try to deplete Ukraine’s Patriot stocks.

Last month, Business Insider’s Sinéad Baker wrote that Russia was strategically trying to bait Ukraine into using up its Patriot stocks to leave itself vulnerable.

Without the protection the Patriot systems afford, Russia could see a much higher success rate and inflict maximal damage with less fear of its strikes failing.

It is unclear how Ukrainian forces downed the three Russian fighter jets this morning.