ABC News sources claim that the Su-35 multi-role fighter has enabled Russian forces to virtually dominate the skies in Ukraine.
Unnamed senior Ukrainian official admitted in an interview with ABC News that despite repeated encounters, Ukraine’s air defense forces are unable to neutralize the latest Su-35 fighter aircraft of the Russian Air Force.
According to the person who spoke with ABC News, “the newest Su-35 fighters are equipped with superior radar and long-range strike missiles that allow them to attack Ukrainian planes and give air support to Russian ground forces.”
Additionally, the official claimed that Ukraine was “not capable” of fending off this threat.
According to ABC News, Ukraine has requested more sophisticated air defense systems from its Western partners because Kiev views Russia’s air superiority as a threat that needs to be countered.
“We always tell Americans that this is a significant problem. There is no other course of action besides supplying Ukraine with cutting-edge fighter aircraft, the official said. He claims that there are 12 times as many Russian military planes as there are in Ukraine.
According to Ukrainian officials, Russia’s advantage would grow as it gradually phased out its older aircraft and put a large number of Su-35s into service. He claims that so far, the US has declined to give Kiev fighter jets, and Kiev is content to employ air defense systems provided by Western partners to counter the Russian air force.
The Su-35 is Russia’s most advanced 4++ generation multirole fighter, incorporating a number of 5th generation fighter technologies.
The 12 pylons on the wings of the Russian fighter type can support 8 tons of weaponry. The aircraft has a passive electronically scanned array (PESA) radar called the N035 Irbis-E, which enables pilots to track and detect 30 targets while simultaneously striking 8 targets from up to 350 kilometers away.
The aircraft can carry out reconnaissance operations and ground, sea, and air attack missions.
The most recent remarks from the Kiev official run counter to recent assertions made by some Western officials that Ukrainian air defenses are suppressing the Russian air force.
This week, the governments of Slovakia and Poland promised to give Ukraine MiG-29 fighter jets developed in the Soviet Union.
The two NATO members “appear to be leveraging the Ukraine situation to dispose of outmoded weaponry that they no longer require,” according to Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov.
