Every day since the start of the large-scale Russian war of aggression on Ukraine, the UK Ministry of Defense publishes its assessment of the situation in the conflict. On August 7, 2023, the issue is the efficiency of the Russian air force.
Via X (formerly Twitter) the UK Ministry of Defense writes: “Russian air forces continue to consistently deploy significant resources in support of land operations in Ukraine, but without decisive operational effect.” It continues, “During the summer, Russian tactical fighters typically flew more than 100 sorties per day, but these were almost always confined to Russian-controlled territory because of the threat posed by Ukrainian air defenses.” Russia has tried to overcome this problem, he said, by increasingly using simple free-fall bombs with range-extending glide kits. “The aircraft can drop these bombs many kilometers from their targets, but they have yet to demonstrate consistent accuracy.”
The UK Ministry of Defense concludes, “At the start of the Ukrainian counteroffensive in the south of the country from June 2023, Russian attack helicopters proved effective. In recent weeks, however, Russia appears to have been less able to deploy effective tactical air forces in the south.”
Image: Kremlin.ru, Vladimir Putin meeting with government ministers (2022-07-08) 02, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (image size modified)