Russia loses nearly 10% of its Tu-22M strategic bombers fleet

This was reported by Forbes.

Before yesterday’s crash, the Russian Air Force had already lost four such aircraft: one crashed, one was shot down, and two were destroyed or severely damaged during Ukrainian drone strikes on an airfield.

From January to March, drone attacks on the Engels airbase resulted in the destruction of a significant stockpile of cruise missiles used by these bombers. The total value of the lost missiles is estimated at approximately one billion dollars. 

While the Tu-22M launches missiles at Ukraine from a relatively safe distance, each sortie is accompanied by certain risks. The aircraft, developed in the 1960s and manufactured in the 1970s-80s, pose a technical challenge. The Kh-22 missiles, although still produced today, also have a design dating back to the 1960s, significantly increasing the danger level.

“Nothing says fun like flying around with an ancient missile containing ~4 tons of hypergolic fuel,” aviation expert Bill Sweetman remarked with irony.

As the media notes, despite the risks and losses of the Tu-22M, Russia will not stop terrorizing the Ukrainian population, even temporarily. The country still has enough of these bombers remaining, as well as other bomber models such as the Tu-95 and Tu-160, allowing it to continue attacks on Ukraine in the near future.

• On April 2, a Tu-22M3 bomber crashed in the Irkutsk region of Russia, and the pilot did not survive.