A Ukrainian drone attack last weekend probably damaged about 10% of Russia's strategic bombers and hit some of the planes as they were being prepared for strikes on Ukraine, a senior German military official was quoted as saying by Reuters, BTA reports.
"According to our estimate, more than a dozen planes were damaged – strategic bombers TU-95 and TU-22, as well as A-50 surveillance aircraft,“ said German Major General Christian Freuding in a podcast that will be uploaded to "YouTube".
Christian Freuding coordinates Berlin's military aid to Kiev and is in close contact with the Ukrainian Defense Ministry, the agency notes.
4We believe that the A-50 surveillance aircraft can no longer be used for spare parts. This is a loss, since only a few such aircraft exist. "As for the long-range bomber fleet, we estimate 10 percent of that fleet was damaged in the attack," he said.
The United States estimates that Ukraine's audacious drone attack hit up to 20 Russian warplanes, destroying about 10 of them, two U.S. officials told Reuters. Experts say it will take Moscow years to replace the affected planes.
Despite the losses, Freuding does not believe Russian strikes on Ukraine will decrease immediately. He noted that Moscow still has 90% of its strategic bombers, which can carry out attacks with ballistic and cruise missiles.
"Of course, there is an indirect effect, as the remaining aircraft will have to fly more, which means they will wear out faster and, most importantly, there is a huge psychological impact," he said.
Freuding said that Russia felt safe on its vast territory, which explains why there was weak protection for the aircraft. "After this successful operation, that is no longer the case. Russia will have to step up security measures," the German general noted.
According to Freuding, Ukraine attacked two airports about 100 km from Moscow, as well as two airports in the Murmansk region with drones trained using artificial intelligence. The fifth attack - near the Chinese border - failed, he said, adding that the downed bombers were part of Russia's so-called nuclear triad.