Russia is going to involve obsolete Su-24M fighters in the war against Ukraine. This was announced by the Deputy Chief of the Main Operational Directorate of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Alexei Gromov.

According to him, this is due to the huge aviation losses of Russia. Gromov said that during the war, Russia lost two squadrons of Su-35 fighters, that is, about 24 aircraft.

“From the experience of combat operations, Su-35 aircraft also showed a low level of survivability,” he said during a briefing.

Su-24M, which in 2005-2018 were withdrawn from its combat strength.

Su-24M is an export modification of the Soviet Su-24 bomber, developed in 1986. The first flight on it was made in 1987, and serial production was discontinued in 1993. In total, about 770 fighters were produced in the Su-24M modification and its derivatives.

On August 9, a series of explosions occurred at the Russian airfield in the village of Novofedorovka in the annexed Crimea. A couple of days later, Planet Labs published satellite images showing that at least 7 fighter jets were damaged in the explosions, probably Su-24s and Su-30 multirole fighters. According to CNN, this could be the biggest loss to Russian aviation since World War II. At the same time, the Ministry of Defense claims that the explosion is the result of the detonation of ammunition, and refuses to confirm the amount of damage received.