Ukrainian Air Force shot down 3 Su-34 fighter-bombers

22 December, 2023 Illustration photo of the Su-34 fighter-bomber. Photo from open sources The Ukrainian Air Force shot down three Russian Su-34 fighter-bombers in the southern sector.

The Commander of the Air Force of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Mykola Oleshchuk reported on this. The mode of destruction of the fighter-bombers has not been reported, and there is no photo or video material that could confirm the loss of the fighter-bombers. However, photos of a Russian Mi-8/17 search-and-rescue helicopter and the landing site of the downed pilots appeared on social media.

It is worth noting that unconfirmed information about the downing of one Su-35 and two Su-34 is circulating online. The Russian propagandist Fighterbomber (Ilya Tumanov) indirectly confirmed the shootdown of one aircraft in his Telegram channel at 1:54 p.m., saying that the crew was being searched for. Later, at 2:14 p.m., he said that all living and dead crew members have been taken away.

He believes the preliminary cause of the loss of planes was a Patriot SAM system. On December 13, Militarnyi reported that the second Patriot system, which Ukraine received from Germany, was about to start operating. The German Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced that Patriot will be deployed in Ukraine by the end of 2023.

A soldier from Germany's second Patriot system.

Photo credits: Team Luftwaffe

Recently, on December 5, Mykola Oleshchuk reported on the shootdown of the Russian Su-24? front-line bomber in the area of Zmiinyi Island.

It is reported that the Su-24?, operating under the cover of a Su-30SM fighter, tried to launch a missile and bomb attack on the southern part of the Odesa region.

Similarly to the shootdown of the Su-34, the mode of destruction was not officially disclosed.