Ukraine's battle for control of its skies
By Jonathan Beale
Defence Correspondent in Donbas, Ukraine
Published 8 hours ago
Russia-Ukraine war
Much of the focus of the war in Ukraine has so far been about the battle on the ground - but the fight to dominate the skies is just as important. The BBC has been given an exclusive interview with a Ukrainian air defence officer about the battle for control of Ukraine's skies.
Captain Vasyl Kravchuk has a surprisingly ready smile for a man who has endured 50 days of war. We spoke to him via video link from his base at an undisclosed location.
He knows the coming weeks will offer no respite. Russia may have received a bloody nose in its aborted attempts to take Kyiv, but with the Eastern region of the Donbas now firmly in Moscow's sights, the men and women of Dnipro's Anti-Aircraft Missile Brigade will continue to play a key role in the next phase of the war.
Defending Ukraine's skies from Russian attacks is already proving a challenge. As one Ukrainian air defence officer told the BBC, it is like trying to use a giant fly swatter which had large holes in it.
"We can't cover the whole airspace," Capt Kravchuk says simply.
The fact he is even sitting here speaking to us is somewhat remarkable - especially given the fact that "many air defence facilities were destroyed fully or partially" in the first days of the war.
It's a rare public admission by Ukrainian forces that they suffered significant losses in the early stages of the war.
But despite these losses, the air defences which survived have still been used to good effect.
Oryx, which has been tracking military losses during the war using visual confirmation, says that Ukraine has destroyed, damaged or captured at least 82 Russian aircraft, including jets, helicopters and drones.
Ukraine's equivalent aircraft losses stands at 33.
Indeed, their successes have confounded military experts, who predicted that Russia would quickly achieve air superiority over Ukraine.
Media caption,
This video, shared by Ukrainian armed forces, shows a Russian helicopter being shot down by a missile
Russia already had a significant advantage in the air, deploying more than three times as many combat aircraft as Ukraine. The US Pentagon says that Russian aircraft have been flying around 250 military missions and carrying out some 30 air strikes every day. Western officials still say that Russia is struggling to gain air superiority.
But in contrast, Ukraine's aging fleet of mostly MiG-29 fighter jets have been struggling to compete, managing at best around 10 military missions a day.
Ukraine knows that Russia has the upper hand in the air. That's why its repeatedly called on Western nations to close its skies.
But Russia's anticipated offensive in the Donbas presents a new, more difficult challenge.
How will Russia attack in east Ukraine?
What is Nato and how is it helping Ukraine?
Are arms shipments to Ukraine making a difference?
Justin Bronk, senior research fellow for airpower at the Royal United Services Institute, says Russia is likely to have greater freedom of access in the airspace over the eastern region than the rest of the country due to its proximity to Russian controlled airspace.
In order to win the fight here, Ukraine requires a mix of long, medium and short range weapons to provide what's known as a "layered defence".
The West has been providing a significant number of shorter-range surface-to-air missiles. The US alone has already sent 2,000 Stingers. The UK has provided an unspecified number of Starstreak high velocity missiles too.
But while Capt Kravchuk says his country is grateful for those shoulder launched weapons, known as Manpads, he says they're only effective on the frontline.
This is because Manpads - man-portable air defence systems - are most effective against low flying aircraft. Russia is mostly using long range cruise missiles and high-altitude bombing.
Capt Kravchuk told the BBC: "We now lack medium and long range air defence systems... we do not have enough."
A renewed Russian offensive in the Donbas will put another serious strain on Ukraine's limited air defence.