Britain recognizes Ukraine’s major breakthrough with strikes in Crimea
British intelligence concluded that recent attacks by Ukrainian forces have caused a general deterioration in Russia’s ability to defend the airspace around Crimea.
The UK Ministry of Defense draws attention to the fact that on May 14, the Ukrainian Armed Forces launched powerful strikes against Russian military targets, which destroyed elements of the C-400 anti-aircraft missile battery at the Belbek airfield, including radar and launchers.
Moreover, it is known that at least two MiG-31BM aircraft were destroyed on the ground.
According to British intelligence, this is the fourth time in recent memory that Russian air defense in Crimea has suffered losses.
The fact that the Ukrainian Armed Forces have recently conducted successful attacks on the Ai-Petri radar station and the Dzhankoy airfield cannot be ignored.
Latest Defence Intelligence update on the situation in Ukraine – 18 May 2024.
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Russia has fewer and fewer options to protect Crimea
“The combined effect of these strikes has led to a general deterioration in Russia’s ability to defend the airspace around Crimea, while demonstrating Ukraine’s ability to influence Russian air defense operations,” the UK Ministry of Defense report says;
It is quite possible that this will force the aggressor country, Russia, to disperse its air assets or risk losing more aircraft and redeploy air defense assets from other locations.
British intelligence also emphasizes that the reduced coverage of A-50s and their dispersal from Crimean airfields is likely to lead to an increase in the number of flight hours and frequency of fighter jet sorties to fill the gaps in coverage, which will lead to increased maintenance problems for their fleets.
