About the activity of NATO intelligence in the Black Sea zone and possible strikes on Russian targets
After the crash of an American MQ-9A Reaper drone southwest of Sevastopol, the activity of reconnaissance aircraft decreased, but not for long. Now several aircraft of the US Air Force and the combined air forces of NATO are operating simultaneously in the Black Sea zone.
What planes were seen on March 17?
➖American drone RQ-4B over Romania and the southern part of the Black Sea ➖American electronic intelligence aircraft RC-135W ➖American electronic intelligence aircraft EP-3E ➖American MQ-9A Reaper UAV (usually four to six UAVs are located at the Kympiya-Turziy airbase) ➖French long-range radar control aircraft (DRLO) E-3F ➖Turkish AWACS aircraft E-7T ➖NATO RQ-4D drone over the central part of the Black Sea
What could be the reason for this?
After the fall of the Reaper, US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said that American aircraft would continue flying over the Black Sea, despite the incident. According to the Pentagon, the US Air Force drones do not provoke Russia in any way, conducting reconnaissance right under their noses.
He did not specify that after almost every such mass concentration of enemy reconnaissance aircraft, especially the presence of the E-3F of the French Aerospace Forces, Ukrainian kamikaze drones attack Russian facilities in the south of the country, including Crimea, the Krasnodar Territory and the Rostov Region.
In addition, now the ships of the Black Sea Fleet of the Russian Navy are searching for and lifting the wreckage of an American drone in the sea. According to the latest data, some parts of the UAV were found at a depth of 900 meters, and Black Sea Fleet warships were on duty around the area.
Today, satellite imagery from March 15 from the alleged location of the MQ-9A elements has emerged, so the sharp increase in US Air Force intelligence activity is not surprising. It is in this area that the NATO RQ-4D Phoenix is now circling.
At the same time, another Reaper entered the airspace over the Black Sea about half an hour ago. At least eight units of aviation operate in the Black Sea zone, which may be preparation for larger raids or sabotage.
Western partners have previously supplied an unknown number of naval drones for the needs of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, which have already been used in attempts to attack ships of the Black Sea Fleet. Now both the Ukrainian and American authorities are interested in changing the news story against the backdrop of the fall of the Reaper and the huge losses of Bakhmut.
The presence of many reconnaissance aircraft of various types can make it possible to determine the exact location of ships and provide target designation for drones - this is a factor that must be taken into account and be prepared for all possible scenarios, up to the need to destroy enemy aircraft.
(not written by me, stolen from a friend who sent it to me)
They were SU-27s
And believe me, no MIG-29 would live longer than 3 minutes over Crimea
No need to delete it, fren! It's all good discussion 😎👍
Why won't the MiG-29 survive over Crimea? I'm curious because the MiG-29 is one of my most favorite aircraft.
It's one of mine, too, so gorgeous. I saw one flying in Poland a long time ago. The MiG-29 was a formidable fighter in its heyday, but it is now considered outdated and obsolete compared to modern fighters. Its analog controls and high pilot workload make it difficult to operate when it counts (very heads down and time-consumingly complex) and it lacks the advanced avionics or even stealth capabilities of newer mod-tier aircraft like the F-18 super hornet, F-15X, or even the Rafale. It also doesn't help that it has a radar cross section of a small barn . Many countries have retired their fleets of MiG-29s in favor of these more advanced fighter jets. While it may still have some value as a low-cost option for countries with limited defense budgets, its limitations make it a less attractive option for more advanced militaries. The aircraft would be swept from the skies very easily by Russia's SU-27s and SU-35s jets.
Russia,s latest Mig is the Mig-35,produced around 2007/8 ,.The Latest Mig-35 is a supposed,.4++++ Gen Fighter,.and its basically an upgraded version of the Mig 29 new avionics and all that stuff,. They first apeared at the Aero India 2009 airshow in Bangalore, February 11, 2009..The Mig 29,& the SU 27 were built to Combat the US F16/F15,..
Presumably the ridiculous density of air defense anywhere near that combat area right now.
The Mig is also my favourite Aircraft,.but with todays Air Defence systems,,.there arent many Fighters that will survive over Crimea,.hence why the US is sending UAV,s instead,.I believe that Stealth was more a marketing Strategy,to sqeeze more $$$$ out of the Taxpayer,.than anything else.Over lesser known Countries maybe like Afghanistan,.Iraq,Lybia,.places like that it worked great ,.where they didnt have the best Air Defence,.Systems,but Russias new S3/4/500, SAM ,..Radar Systems,can see Stealth Aircraft the size of an Elephant,.cheers