Ukraine's military announced on Thursday it had shot down a Sukhoi Su-34 light bomber operated by Russia. The Ukrainian General Staff announced on Facebook “A russian SU-34 fighter-bomber has just been shot down by a Joint forces air defence unit near the town of VOLNOVAKHA. The pilots of this plane carried out a barbaric bombardment of the civilian population and infrastructure of the city.”
The Su-34 is an extensively modified version of the Su-27 air superiority fighter and is optimised for long-range air-to-surface attack missions using bombs and missiles. It has advanced electronics to aid in low-level flying and accurate weapons delivery. The Su-34 is different from other variants of the Su-27 family, due to its larger size and take-off weight and distinctive 'platypus-shaped' nose, which enables carriage of an advanced radar.
The Su-34 entered service in 2014 and is considered as Russia’s most advanced tactical combat aircraft for ground attack missions. Russia is believed to operate around 125 Su-34 jets.
Some media reports had claimed that Russia had not deployed the Su-34 in the opening days of the invasion of Ukraine. Janes reported the Su-34 was first seen operating over Kharkiv on February 28.
Moreover, social media handles had claimed a Su-34 was shot down in the vicinity of Kharkiv on Wednesday, though the Ukrainian military did not confirm it.
Earlier on Thursday, the Ukrainian military claimed to have shot down a Su-30 fighter over Irpin near Kyiv.
The Ukrainian military announced on Thursday it estimated Russia has lost about 9,000 personnel in the invasion, which began a week ago, as well as 217 tanks and 900 armoured vehicles. There has been variance in reporting of the death toll. On Wednesday, Russia claimed 498 of its soldiers had been killed and 1,597 have been injured in the first week of the invasion. However, western officials believe the casualties are significantly higher.
