Ministry of Defense: Ukraine has lost 500 aircraft since the start of the special operation

The Ukrainian Air Force has already lost 500 aircraft since the beginning of the Russian military special operation, according to statistics published in the daily summary Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation.

Moreover, in the last 24 hours alone, Russian air defense systems are said to have shot down seven Ukrainian Mig-29 aircraft. Over the week, the total number of aircraft shot down was 12, of which 10 were Mig-29s and two Su-25 attack aircraft. Two Mi-8 helicopters were also shot down.

Since the beginning of the special operation, according to the Ministry of Defense, the Ukrainian side has lost 252 helicopters, more than 8,100 drones, almost 12,800 tanks and other armored vehicles.

Over the past week, the Russian Armed Forces carried out four group strikes with high-precision weapons and UAVs on ammunition depots, fuel and lubricants, production workshops of weapons factories and military locations.

During this period, the enemy made 18 attempts to attack in the Krasnolimansk direction, ultimately losing over 940 troops and two tanks. In the Donetsk direction, the Russian Armed Forces have already repelled 25 attacks, the losses of the Ukrainian Armed Forces exceeded 2,000 people. In the Yuzhnodonetsk direction, Russian troops took up more advantageous positions, repelling two enemy attacks.

Earlier on October 16, Russian air defense systems shot down two MiG-29 fighters and one Su-25 attack aircraft of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the sky over the Kherson and Dnepropetrovsk regions. On October 11, the Russian military reported the defeat of a Ukrainian Su-25 attack aircraft at the Dolgintsevo airfield.

Russia’s special operation in Ukraine began on February 24, 2022. During the fighting, Russian troops took full control of the LPR, as well as most of the DPR, Kherson and Zaporozhye regions. Since the beginning of June, the Ukrainian Armed Forces have been conducting active offensive operations.

According to Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, during the three months of the counter-offensive, the Armed Forces of Ukraine did not achieve their goals in any of the directions. During a meeting of the Valdai Forum, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that since the start of the counter-offensive, the Ukrainian Armed Forces have lost more than 90,000 people. In addition, 557 tanks and almost 1,900 armored vehicles of various classes of the Armed Forces of Ukraine were destroyed, he added.