On the evening of January 14, Ukrainian mass media and Telegram channels, citing their own sources, disseminated information that the downing of the Russian A-50 early detection aircraft and damage to the Il-22 over the Sea of Azov was assumed.
On the morning of January 15, the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Valery Zaluzhny confirmed this information, claiming that both planes were destroyed by the Ukrainian Air Force.
"The Air Force of Ukraine destroyed an enemy A-50 early detection aircraft and an Il-22 aircraft that served as an enemy air control point. I express my gratitude to the Air Force for the successfully planned and executed operation in the Azov region!" - wrote Zaluzhnyi.
The commander of the Air Force of the Ukrainian Armed Forces Mykola Oleschuk also commented on this event in his Telegram channel, but refrained from providing details.
"This is for the Dnipro!" - he noted, recalling the anniversary of the tragic incident with a high-rise building in the city of Dnipro, which resulted in numerous victims.
The Russian authorities have not yet commented on these reports. Vladimir Putin's spokesman Dmytro Peskov noted that he did not have any information on this matter and recommended contacting the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation.
The IL-22 aircraft is used as an air command post to control troops during active combat operations.
As for the A-50, it is a Soviet and Russian long-range radar detection and control aircraft. The main purpose of this aircraft is to detect and track air and sea targets, as well as coordinate the actions of air defense systems.
Russian telegram channels of the military also consider these "incidents".
At night, the Colonelcassad telegram channel, owned by military blogger Boris Rozhin, reported that "the Il-18/22 situation has already been resolved, the plane has landed, but there are casualties." Regarding "A-50, no reliable information has been received from the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation".
On Monday morning, the telegram channel of military commander Romanov suggested that the A-50 was shot down, hinting at "friendly fire".
"An A-50 was shot down near the Sea of Azov. The second downed Il-22M plane landed in Anapa. The enemy has no relation to shooting down/shooting down these planes."
The mass media had previously reported that during the rebellion of Yevgeny Prigozhin in July of last year, mercenaries of the "Wagner" PMC shot down an IL-22. There was no official confirmation then either.
So, the Ukrainian military admitted that it was their Air Force that shot down two Russian planes. However, Russian sources suggest that this may be the result of "friendly fire" by their own forces.
Ukrainian military commentator Oleksandr Kovalenko presented his own analysis in his Telegram channel, casting doubt on this theory.
"The bottom line is that the Il-22 relay plane and the A-50 anti-aircraft missile have been flying the same routes for two years, ensuring the stability of communication, control of the air situation and management of operational-tactical aviation," he noted.
Kovalenko believes that, even in the absence of a working system "own-foreign", these aircraft should be identified by air defense operators as their own.
"Given their size, speed and flight height, such aircraft could not be confused, for example, with a missile or an enemy fighter," he adds.
Ihor Romanenko, an air defense expert and former deputy chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, emphasized that the loss of these aircraft will have serious consequences for the Russian army. Apart from material losses, since the cost of one A-50 aircraft is about 330 million dollars, and Il-22 is about 30 million dollars.
"From a military point of view, the loss of such elements of air control and intelligence significantly affects the effectiveness of management and, therefore, the combat effectiveness of the air force. This is a significant loss of the intelligence management system," the general noted.
At the same time, he admitted that the simultaneous loss of two such strategically important aircraft "deals an image blow" to the Russian army.
The A-50 aircraft is a particularly valuable asset, being in much smaller numbers than fighters. In Russia, there are only nine examples of long-range radar detection aircraft (DRLO) A-50 and four modernized versions - A-50U.
This aircraft has a special importance in the military context, acting as the "eyes and ears" for aviation groups, as well as their "nerve center".
The A-50, or long-range radar detection aircraft, is critical to controlling the airspace in which aviation operates. It is noted for its ability to detect targets, as well as coordinate and direct its own combat aircraft.
Able to track not only air, but also ground targets, such as radars, the A-50 aircraft is an integral part of any modern air operation. This type of radar expands the possibilities of monitoring the airspace in areas where there are no powerful ground stations and control centers.
This aircraft acts as an air command post designed to control troops during combat operations. Since it operates in the air, it cannot be attacked by operational-tactical missiles.
An additional advantage of this aircraft is the ability to communicate with combat units on the ground from a height. This is especially important when interacting with front-line aircraft, which often fly at low altitude, complicating the communication process.
The Il-22 aircraft was developed in the 1970s and is capable of performing a variety of tasks. In total, since then, approximately three dozen Il-22s have been produced and modernized. The latest modernization program resulted in the Il-22 LURT (command and relay aircraft) version that exists to this day.
According to Military Balance data for 2022, at the time of the start of the active phase of the conflict with Ukraine, Russia had 12 Il-22M aircraft and 10 Il-22 (older modifications).
