These aircraft are now systematically patrolling Russia’s rear areas, helping to detect Ukrainian cruise missiles and coordinate air defense systems.
Літак далекого радіолокаційного виявлення А-50У
After a near complete hiatus, the Russian army has resumed regular use of its A-50U long-range radar detection aircraft.
This is reported by Militarny.
As noted in the material, referencing an analysis by the “Cyber Flour” project, since the beginning of June, A-50U aircraft have been hardly involved in combat duty near the Ukrainian front.
Between June 4 and June 22, analysts recorded only isolated movements of these aircraft. Specifically, this included the return to service of a repaired aircraft with the number “47 red,” as well as a flight along the Vorkuta-Olenya route.
However, after June 23, the situation changed significantly. One of the A-50U aircraft began regularly performing night combat duty over rear regions of Russia, primarily in the airspace of the Ulyanovsk and Samara regions.
According to the research, this activity continued until the end of the observation period. In total, analysts counted approximately 60 flights.
The material also states that on July 4, an A-50U aircraft played a significant role in repelling an attack by Ukrainian cruise missiles.
Previously, aircraft of this type were predominantly based at the “Ivanovo” and “Ulyanovsk” airfields. Subsequently, the Russian command altered its tactics, dispersing them to other rear airbases.
In particular, A-50Us began to be deployed from the airfields of “Bolshoye Savino” in Perm, “Orenburg-2,” and “Chelyabinsk.”
Analysts paid special attention to an event on July 7, when Russia simultaneously scrambled four A-50U aircraft. In their estimation, this constitutes almost the entire combat-ready fleet of such aircraft currently possessed by the Russian Federation.
Thus, in a short period, the Russian army has transitioned from almost complete non-utilization of A-50Us to their regular deployment.
In the opinion of analysts, Moscow is thus seeking to enhance airspace control and improve the effectiveness of detecting Ukrainian missile strike assets.
The A-50U is a long-range radar detection aircraft capable of detecting aerial targets at great distances and transmitting information to air defense systems and combat aircraft. For this reason, it remains one of the key elements of the Russian air operation management system.
It was previously reported that a Russian A-50U long-range radar detection aircraft, destroyed over the Sea of Azov in January 2024, may have been hit by a Patriot SAM missile.
We previously informed that the latest destruction of an A-50 aircraft was one of the most significant losses for Russian aviation in the war against Ukraine.
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