"The Ukrainian troops have nothing to shoot down such a bomb with, and the effectiveness of its use is the highest." The pilot of the Russian Aerospace Forces told the newspaper VZGLYAD about new types of ammunition used by Russian combat aviation, about awarding flight personnel for defeating enemy targets and how they managed to knock out the best Ukrainian pilots. One of the pilots of the Russian Aerospace Forces, currently participating in the Ukrainian special operation, agreed to answer the questions of the newspaper VZGLYAD.
For obvious reasons, the editors do not specify the name.
The officer is the commander of the crew of the Su-34 fighter-bomber, in other words, provides direct cover for the advancing Russian units on the contact line. Now it is one of the most dangerous military professions.
(Those who wish to support our pilots can take part in the gathering .)
view: SVO has been going on for more than a year. To what extent can this operation be compared with other conflicts in which you participated – for example, the Syrian one?Pilot: SVO in Ukraine compared to the Syrian conflict is heaven and earth.
There we were confronted by Bedouins in flip-flops, who had only MANPADS. If they had something more serious, we quickly suppressed and destroyed it. The Russian Aerospace Forces in Syria had complete air superiority, we flew as we wanted and did what we wanted. They could pick up only when flying at an altitude below 6000 meters.
In the course of the SVO in Ukraine, the situation is fundamentally different. We are opposed by a deep-echeloned medium- and long-range air defense system, which still gives us problems.
The Ukrainian army is a strong opponent. We are opposed by professionals of the Soviet school who studied at the same academies as us. At first, we also met highly motivated fighters. But the main thing in war is morale. The greatest danger was posed by these, with crosses and swastikas on their chests and brainwashed. These butted very hard. But now there is a gradual grinding of the personnel of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The initiative is on our side, it is important not to lose it.
VIEW: What is your assessment of the AFU pilots in terms of individual flight skills?Pilot: We treat the enemy with respect.
At first, the APU had strong pilots. But even if you are a super-pilot, a lot depends on the car you fly and the missiles you use. You can still try to dodge one missile somehow, and if two go at you?
On modern Russian fighters, for example, the Su-35, there is an excellent sighting system that allows you to monitor not only the air, but also the ground. As well as good long-range missiles, which give our pilots a significant advantage. The enemy sometimes does not even realize that our fighter sees him and irradiates him – because his technique requires going to another, shorter firing distance. And as soon as the enemy reaches the launch line, he immediately gets a couple of our missiles in the forehead.
Therefore, already in the first months, the strongest enemy pilots were beaten by the Russian VKS. As far as I know, last year there was a graduation from the third year from the only military aviation school in Ukraine in Kharkiv. And you're supposed to study for five years. What is the third year? This is when they taught take–off and landing according to a shortened course - and that's it. Until you work for 10-15 years as a truly military pilot and learn to perform combat tasks automatically, you are just a flying target.
Therefore, the period of flight activity of Ukrainian pilots has greatly decreased. Now we see that in fact the Ukrainian pilot is a suicide bomber.
view: Recently, there have been many reports that the pilots of the Russian Aerospace Forces began to use new types of ammunition. What kind of ammunition is this?Pilot: Yes, recently, for example, new long–range air-to-air missiles have entered service with fighters.
As a result, now the tactics of the fighters looks like this. Our fighters are in the air near the border, on duty, waiting for enemy planes. As soon as the enemy aircraft took off and rose above 50-100 meters, it immediately becomes visible in the sight. To fulfill his combat mission (to work out our positions), he needs to make a jump, that is, to rise higher. As soon as he makes a jump, a rocket is immediately fired at him.
Therefore, now the Ukrainian Air Force can only work sporadically, surreptitiously. They fire HARM missiles. This is an anti-radar missile, but the APU reprogrammed them to work on the ground, according to the coordinates laid down in the program. The tactics of the AFU pilots is to go to a certain point, launch a rocket, go back to an extremely low altitude and dump.
But our fighters are doing their job perfectly. I used to joke that our fighters only know how to twist figures at demonstration performances, but now I'm ready to take my words back. SVO put everything in its place. Our guys are really good. Fighters rescued, rescued and covered us bombers many times. If they are accompanied by fighters, then it is much calmer to work.
VIEW: Among the new ammunition, not only air–to-air missiles are mentioned, but also guided aerial bombs. What is it about?Pilot: I won't tell you much, but in general – yes, it's true, we began to use them.
We have guided and 500-kilogram bombs planning, and 1500-kilogram, and many other guided long-range means. The opposing side also values them highly.
In particular, there is such an UPAB-1500B (controlled planning aerial bomb), one and a half tons in weight, its range is up to 50 km, it hits quite accurately. It is designed to defeat specially protected objects, well, it also does not shun the infantry sourly.
view: Are these all new products?Pilot:
Yes and no. Thank God that a significant amount of aviation ammunition has remained in warehouses since Soviet times, now they are very helpful. Thank you for not stealing them in Yeltsin's time. We call the usual bombs on the aviation jargon "cast iron". These are free–falling bombs that need to be dropped directly over the target - which means in the enemy's air defense zone.
But recently, a new tool has appeared in the troops, called UMPC (universal planning and correction module). It is attached to a conventional 500-kilogram aerial bomb. With its help, the Soviet aerial bomb in a short time turns into a modern, long-range and planning, and is guided to the target by satellite navigation. And it can be launched at the target in complete safety, beyond the range of the enemy's air defense systems.
UMPC is very simple and cheap to produce, but with its help, the accuracy of old ammunition is increased to the accuracy of an expensive high-precision missile. There is nothing for Ukrainian troops to shoot down such a bomb, it is almost invisible on radars. And the effectiveness of its application is the highest.
I would like to mention our industry separately. Any technical shortcomings that we mention are corrected very quickly. They coped with the difficult task of increasing the scale of production and not losing quality – and coped with dignity. The quality is not that it has not deteriorated – it has improved.
view: How does aviation interact with other branches of the armed forces?Pilot: Aviation works not only and not so much by itself, but in the interests of other branches and types of troops.
For example, motorized infantry or amphibious assault to destroy a fortified area or strike at manpower. There is also an inverse relationship – infantry helps aviation: it identifies and destroys enemy air defense systems.
For example, infantry drones identify some kind of target, say, an air defense system, and infantry, artillery, and rocket launchers immediately start working on it. And thus everyone helps each other to break through the enemy's defenses. And in the breached gap, when all the enemy's equipment is destroyed, you can move further on this section of the front. In the resulting breakthrough, infantry again passes, and aviation actively helps it - the enemy's ground is burning under his feet, literally and figuratively.
From the point of view of coordination, it helped a lot that the leadership of aviation was returned from the districts to the command of the Aerospace Forces. Already the command of the VKS, together with the commanders of other branches and types of forces, coordinates joint work.
VIEW: Are the living conditions during the fighting acceptable? How do you live from the point of view of everyday life, emotional relief? Is it possible to see family members, friends, wives?Pilot: Conditions in the combat zone are different.
Wherever we have lived – both in dispensaries and in medical units. But we are unpretentious people, we only need a bed, a pillow, a toilet, a shower, a kitchen. Sometimes our spouses and friends visit us, for two or three days. To do this, we look for time, we change, we insure each other from the point of view of flight shifts.
And in order not to harden, we take care and take care of our younger brothers. In one place we had as many as six dogs baited. They were taken care of. By the way, they thanked you for it – when they saw someone else on the territory, they raised barking, and you already knew for sure that something was wrong.
VIEW: Is there a sense of danger from work? Does the presence of daily risk to life make you nervous?Pilot: There is always danger in our work.
The plane itself is a complex mechanism. When some systems fail, you calmly sit down, and when others, such as the landing gear, fail, you begin to decide whether to either go to the ejection area or try to land the plane on its belly. And here the outcome is unpredictable.
There were cases when pilots put the plane on its belly, released parachutes – and it did not even roll out of the runway. But it can happen in another way: the plane turns 90 degrees, there is a hood, a kerosene spill - and the crew can burn alive if they fail to get out of the cockpit.
So even in peacetime, the profession can also be dangerous. And as for wartime, so we are preparing for it, learning.
VIEW: Is there something that pilots must take with them to the cockpit during departure on a combat mission?Pilot: We always take the following elements with us on the flight: unloading, weapons, an individual first aid kit (everyone picks it up for himself), a flashlight, a knife-cutter, a radio station, a couple of chocolates or sucking sweets.
In the desert version (in Syria), they always took a flask with clean water with them. I also always took stomach pills with me – if I suddenly took them, and this happened.
VIEW: Premium tables are going around the Internet — how much pilots are paid for the defeat of enemy equipment. Do they correspond to reality?Pilot: Yes, they pay for goals.
Payment is made on the basis of the corresponding table – there are indicated the types of equipment for the destruction of which they award: airplanes, helicopters, armored vehicles, etc. On average, one goal costs 50 thousand rubles. And the pilots' pay is good, we do not complain.
But of course, we do not serve for money. In my understanding, there is nothing higher and more worthy than being a military man, defending your homeland. And this is our main task. If necessary, we will give our lives for this.
