Ukrainian servicemen. File photoMOSCOW, April 15The main part of serviceable Ukrainian combat aircraft and helicopters was destroyed in the first days of the military special operation, individual aircraft of the Ukrainian Air Force in the air cannot significantly affect the course of events, Doctor of Military Sciences Konstantin Sivkov told RIA Novosti. According to data provided on March 25, 2022 by the head Head of the Main Operations Directorate of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces by Sergey Rudsky, at the beginning of the special operation, Ukraine had 152 aircraft and 149 helicopters in service. The official representative of the Russian military department, Major General Igor Konashenkov, said on April 14 that 131 planes and 104 helicopters of the Ukrainian Air Force had already been destroyed during the conflict. Thus, the Ukrainian troops today have 21 aircraft and 45 helicopters. «Introducing single aircraft into operation, the Ukrainian army is not able to achieve any significant results for itself, while actually dooming its pilots to death. Thus, today it is possible say that the Ukrainian Air Force is not combat-ready and cannot somehow seriously influence the course of the operation,» Sivkov said. The expert explained that at the time it began, not all Ukrainian military aviation was in good condition. Most of the serviceable aircraft were destroyed on the first day of the operation at military airfields. «Later, Ukraine, using its repair specialists, began to put into operation the defective aircraft and helicopters that were at the storage bases, and let them fly into the air, which from a military point of view is simply stupid «, — the source of the agency emphasized. Russia launched a special military operation in Ukraine on February 24. President Vladimir Putin called its goal «the protection of people who have been subjected to bullying and genocide by the Kiev regime for eight years.» bloody crimes against civilians» of Donbass. According to the Ministry of Defense, the Armed Forces strike only at military infrastructure and Ukrainian troops and, on March 25, they completed the main tasks of the first stage — they significantly reduced the combat potential of Ukraine. The main goal in the Russian military department was called the liberation of Donbass.
