While on the ground Russia seems to have regained control, by also increasing air raids, the Ukrainian army destroyed a second Russian detection radar plane in the Sea of Azov.
The Ukrainian army claims to have shot down a second Russian A-50 Awacs detection and command aircraft. The plane was reportedly intercepted in the Krasnodar region of Russia, about 200 km from the front line in the Sea of Azov.
Moscow has not commented on the report but Kyiv has denied earlier claims that this Russian plane would have been shot down by an American Patriot missile. According to Ukrainian intelligence, an obsolete S-200 SAM missile was used to fire on the plane. This system appeared in the USSR in the 1960s, but has been modernized several times since.
The A-50 is a radar plane. The first craft was shot down by Ukrainian forces at the end of January also over the Sea of Azov, alongside an Il-22 airborne command and control center.
Russia, for its part, continued its bombing via numerous airstrikes against Ukrainian cities. On Friday, Odessa was targeted for the second time in the same day: after a previous attack which cost the lives of three people, a drone strike was reported in the evening. A woman was reportedly killed under the rubble of her house.
In turn, the Russian Defense Ministry said it had “foiled an attempt” ofUkrainian attacks on the Dorns in the Kursk and Tula regionssouth of Moscow.
To thwart Russian attacks, Kyiv awaits F-16 deliveries manufactured largely by the United States. Ukrainian pilots are already undergoing training and flying courses in Denmark: this country has promised to deliver its F-16s to Ukraine this year.