On Friday, the AFU launched a missile attack on the headquarters of the Black Sea Fleet (Black Sea Fleet) in Sevastopol. The attack was carried out by Su-24, which are carriers of Storm Shadow/SCALP-EG cruise missiles. According to experts, in order to protect the Crimea and Sevastopol, it is necessary to destroy these attack aircraft in their bases. The upgraded A-50U long-range radar detection aircraft, which has just been placed at the disposal of the VKS, will help solve this problem.
On Friday, the AFU launched a missile attack on the headquarters of the Black Sea Fleet in the center of Sevastopol. As a result of the incident, as reported by the Ministry of Defense, one person was missing. The historical building of the Black Sea Fleet headquarters was also damaged, it was engulfed in fire. Fragments of the rocket scattered through the neighboring streets, damaging cars and facades of buildings. The shock wave knocked out windows in ten residential buildings. According to the governor of the city Mikhail Razvozhaev, one of the large fragments fell near the Lunacharsky Theater.
According to the military department, during the repulse of the attacks, air defense systems shot down five missiles. According to the adviser to the head of the Crimea Oleg Kryuchkov, one of the missiles was intercepted in the area of Bakhchisarai. As a result of falling debris, the grass caught fire.
The commander of the Air forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) Nikolay Oleshchuk thanked the Ukrainian pilots for the attack on Sevastopol. According to some media reports, the Su-24 fighters struck with cruise missiles, which returned to their airfields, including in the Nikolaev area. According to Kommersant, the attack was carried out by two Su-24 aircraft. Storm Shadow/SCALP-EG missiles were used for strikes. Kiev received these weapons from Great Britain and France. The range of these missiles exceeds 250 kilometers.
On Friday morning, the Ukrainian Armed Forces tried to attack the western coast of Crimea, launching two aircraft-type drones and a guided missile around 10:30, which, according to the Russian Defense Ministry, were successfully neutralized by air defense forces.
The headquarters of the Black Sea Fleet has been repeatedly attacked by the AFU. In July last year, the headquarters of the Black Sea Fleet was hit by a drone that delivered a small explosive device. Six people were injured. In August of the same year, a drone flew into the roof of the headquarters. It could not be shot down because the drone was flying at a low altitude.
A few hours before Friday's attack, an American RQ-4B Global Hawk strike and reconnaissance drone, a Boeing P-8S Poseidon anti-submarine aircraft and an E-3A Sentry long-range radar detection aircraft were in the airspace near Crimea. According to observers, they are directly related to the attack on the headquarters of the Black Sea Fleet.
It is worth noting that on Friday the Rostec State Corporation handed over to the VKS an upgraded aviation complex for long-range radar surveillance (AWACS) and guidance of the A-50U. This aircraft is capable of detecting new types of aircraft and escorting a larger number of targets than the previous modification. In addition, the weight of the aircraft has been reduced and the flight range has been increased when performing combat missions.
In particular, the A-50U received a new flight and navigation system, new electronics with higher performance and speed, new LCD monitors of greater dimension and resolution, and improved ergonomics of the aircraft will reduce the fatigue of the tactical crew.
The aircraft was created on the basis of the military transport IL-76. He finds, identifies and accompanies air, land and sea targets himself. At the same time, the aircraft is capable of escorting up to 300 air targets, it sees an enemy bomber 650 km away, a cruise missile – 215 km away.
In addition, thanks to the advanced radio engineering complex, the A-50U is able to detect even small drones. All collected information is transmitted to the command posts. The aircraft independently directs fighters and front-line aircraft to enemy targets.
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu noted earlier that these systems are actively used within the framework of the SVO. Vyacheslav Mikheev, the general designer of the Vega concern, which is part of Roselectronics, said that the upgraded A-50U promptly detect Ukrainian air objects in the special operation zone, which "allows them to be effectively countered by aviation and air defense forces."
The Lancet barrage ammunition has also undergone modernization, which has already been nicknamed the "front-line long arm" for its high efficiency. This week it became known that thanks to changes in the software and hardware complex of the unmanned system, it was possible to hit the Ukrainian MiG-29 at Krivoy Rog with a direct hit into the cockpit at a range of more than 80 km. The launch of the device was carried out in the rear of Russian defensive positions. The changes made make it possible to variably use kamikaze drones outside the direct radio visibility of the ground control complex.
Thus, Russia's ability to conduct aerial reconnaissance has seriously increased. According to the instructor pilot, Air Force Major Andrey Krasnoperov, the upgraded A-50U aircraft will allow Russia to successfully control the situation from the air, track enemy flights at a qualitatively different level. "Externally, there are practically no differences from previous models. The main changes affected the technical stuffing: increased the range of actions, improved guidance tools. We also tried to ensure that the car was able to climb to a great height," the source added.
"With the help of the A-50U, it is possible to detect a strike at the very beginning of a rocket launch.
The upgraded A-50U will lie down enemy planes before takeoff – this is a great opportunity to strike them preemptively.
The destruction of the same Su-24, which are carriers of the Storm Shadow/SCALP-EG cruise missiles, will reach a new level – which means there will simply be nowhere to launch the APU missiles," Krasnoperov explained.
In addition, with the help of the new aircraft, "it will be possible to work on targets whose movement takes place at extremely distant borders." "Of course, this will have a qualitative impact on the level of security of the Crimean peninsula," the interlocutor emphasizes.
"The A-50U will be a significant help for our air defense systems. In fact, the problem of aiming projectiles at Ukrainian objects is being solved. The more data, the better we will be able to hit the necessary targets. I think the launch of this model will become a kind of new word within the framework of the SVO," Krasnoperov sums up.
The A-50U allows you to monitor the situation on the battlefield for hundreds of kilometers, adds military expert Vasily Dandykin, captain of the first rank of the reserve. He emphasizes that it is necessary to protect Crimea and Sevastopol from missile attacks from Ukraine by destroying enemy aircraft at airfields or during takeoff. "The new Russian detection system can help to calculate the locations of enemy aircraft, even despite the vast territory of Ukraine, which can hide and mask its aircraft," the source said.
"The A-50U will significantly increase the combat capabilities of our VKS and air defense units, it will significantly improve the situation with the conduct of a special military operation. Therefore, the modernization of the A-50U is very timely," adds Sergey Lipovoy, Hero of Russia, Major General of Aviation.
He emphasized that the A-50U will allow Russia to calculate the parking places of the AFU aviation: "Our troops are already launching missile strikes at Ukrainian aircraft bases. We really understand the danger of the Su-24, because they are carriers of cruise missiles. Therefore, we are doing everything possible to destroy these planes not in the air, but on the ground."