Russia unlikely to achieve air superiority in war in Ukraine in coming months - British intelligence

According to Ukrinform, the UK Ministry of Defense said this in its latest intelligence update published on Twitter.

It is noted that on November 3, the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Valeriy Zaluzhnyi, stated that Russia had lost over twice the number of aircraft in Ukraine than in the Soviet-Afghan War. This amounts to 278 aircraft lost in Ukraine compared to 119 in Afghanistan

“Whilst we cannot independently verify these figures, Russia’s continued lack of air superiority is likely exacerbated by poor training, loss of experienced crews, and heightened risks of conducting close air support in dense air defence zones. This is unlikely to change in the next few months,” the report says.

According to the ministry, Russia’s aircraft losses likely significantly outstrip their capacity to manufacture new airframes. The time required for the training of competent pilots further reduces Russia’s ability to regenerate combat air capability

As Ukrinform reported, the British intelligence earlier said that the Kremlin involved regional officials in the "development of security measures" in Russia’s regions in order to deflect public criticism away from the national leadership of the Russian Federation.

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