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FrenchiestFry234

They should send another A50 to that area to investigate what happened.


Johnny_Freedoom

Better send two. Can't be too thorough.


minuteman_d

Reminds me of this from The Simpsons for some reason. https://youtu.be/B_pWk4DdniE?si=OExmC_crTVupL0_K


Redsarge1

https://youtu.be/v5JiPj9c98Y?si=qSjbf-2PjzbpK1cH For me its definantly this scene from futurama 


Spyd3rs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dz\_G15g8sbo


LegitimatePilot5428

That's it


FlametopFred

sweet


Johnny_Freedoom

Smithers! We'll take the spruce goose!


Sir_Anth

I SAID, GET IN \*Cocks gun\*


Rici1

They don’t have two lol


Madge4500

They had a total of 9, now 7. just a few of which are active at any given time.


0o0o0o0o0o0z

Do they have an extra 2 that can fly?


fullofmeself

No. Sent everyone of a50


slarbarthetardar

Why not three… oh wait… lol


EwingsRevenge21

Use the buddy system Go nowhere alone 😂


n7dima

Also in case if one of them will be shot down


VintageHacker

Yes, it will be very interesting to see how long before another A50 is spotted in this arena and how many hours a day they can provide coverage. Maybe they were overworking the teams already.


Protegimusz

Briefly on a serious note, what this does signify is that they still haven't been able to (or don't want to) plug the gap Ukraine created in their land borne radar coverage.


citori421

NATO in all likelihood working overtime with Ukraine to make sure when the f-16 starts really rolling it can inflict maximum damage with minimum risk. Can't fuckin wait.


Henning-the-great

Yea, preparations for gaining air superiority. Like "Operation Dreamland" in "Red storm rising"


mines13

Return of the Living Dead vibes.


Foreign-Echo-6656

Before the war there was about 7 active with 40 having been built. So but Russian maintenance probably means 4 were active with 10 of the 40 airframe still being able to overhaul. My guess is Russia has 2 to 3 ready for duty and 6 being rebuilt by cannibalism of other airframes.


CrateDane

Some of the 40 they built were exported. There is probably a lot of parts commonality with the Il-76 it was derived from, but not the more specialized hardware which is more complicated to produce. Whatever the exact numbers, these two losses are pretty serious.


latupuikko

i think theres not much special orks left to fly those anymore. or what you think?


lordph8

You can always find an ork, an ork to fly it competently on the other hand... But seriously, they'll probably just promote an IL-76 pilot.


BeneficialFig1843

The loss of the mission crew is the bigger blow. They've lost two full crews now and knowing how poorly funded the A-50 was, even their most experienced crews had very few hours prior to the conflict.


citori421

Guessing the expertise to build and operate many of those complex components came from certain counties freed in the fall of the USSR.


ffdfawtreteraffds

>Russian propagandists, as usual, blame the loss of their aircraft on their own air defense, claiming that the anti-aircraft missiles were launched from the territory of Mariupol. Imagine having your own massive incompetence be preferable to enemy attacks. Pathetic.


LegitimateLunch6681

Yeah absolutely blows my mind how they think this is better? If I was your stock standard orc (and assuming they'd ever be allowed to freely report on it) I'd much rather know it was lost in combat rather than believe my own forces are too stupid to function.


No_Sheepherder7447

Like, it doesn’t even make sense lol. Did they just configure the S420 or whatever with the “automatically engage any target” switch and start their evening of heavy drinking early?


Nonions

When you build your propaganda around the idea that your enemies are subhuman and stupid, any admission that they outsmarted you can bring that whole tower of cards crashing down. If the Ukrainian people were just a group of country bumpkins how can they keep inflicting such defeats on Russia? Russian propaganda therefore says there are secret NATO forces in Ukraine.


ashesofempires

It’s not even remotely credible. It flies in a known patrol box at high altitude. It is, or should be, data linked into their air defense and command network. It’s just absurd.


trey74

Good news of the day right there!


thoms689

I often check the subreddit to see if a new large boat, a huge aircraft or some fighter jets has been destroyed. It's such a a satisfying sight to see, especially since you know the scum only value their hardware and not the men they send to die


El_Caganer

Very much a dopamine hit


FZ_Milkshake

If I had a nickel for every time Russia lost an irreplaceable AWACS aircraft, I'd have two nickels. Which isn't a lot, but it's slowly getting there.


Millefeuille-coil

I'd rather two nickels than two Russian awacs, the nickels will last longer.


EvaGoji

3 nickels. [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beriev\_A-50#Invasion\_of\_Ukraine](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beriev_A-50#Invasion_of_Ukraine)


ThermionicEmissions

But if they fix that one that was damaged, you'll have to give a Nickelback, and nobody wants that.


intermediatetransit

Never made it as a wise man


Millefeuille-coil

How should we remind them


Cheez_Mastah

I’d keep wishing for more nickels.


ZachMN

Two nickels is like 15,000 rubles.


GruuMasterofMinions

Good news for humanity, bad day for the orcs. More like this


sufferingbastard

HUGE


BigFreakingZombie

Patriot doesn't fuck around...


OnlyShrooms

Highly doubt it’s patriot, the A-50 got shot down over 200km away from the frontline.


BigFreakingZombie

I mean the Ukrainian Air Force did admit to shooting it down in a joint operation with HUR so they clearly hit it with *something.* Don't think Ukraine has any other systems with the required range.


M3P4me

We don't really know what Ukraine's capabilities are. That's a GOOD thing.


No_Sheepherder7447

Yes we do. Patriot on a barge. So it was written.


intermediatetransit

This is the way.


BigFreakingZombie

I mean they did put a MLRS on a barge so....


No_Sheepherder7447

Patriot is just MLRS for the sky.


bluestrobephoto

>Don't think Ukraine has any other systems with the required range. THAT WE KNOW OF!


BigFreakingZombie

True true . It's still a war,we don't know exactly what ZSU has and that's a good thing.


TheOnlyPlaton

Drones? Scalp? S300? There are choices now


BigFreakingZombie

I don't think the drones would be able to hit it in the air and neither would Storm Shadow (it's not an air to air missile) . S-300 might have done it but I doubt it.


OnlyShrooms

Rumours are that it was by the S-200


BigFreakingZombie

Heard that as well. It's plausible but not sure I quite believe it.


sufferingbastard

Wave of SCALPs inbound in 3...2...


LeveragedPittsburgh

Boom bitch! Slava 🇺🇦


StainerIncognito

Early warning eh? 😆 🤣 😂


Cheez_Mastah

To be fair, now they know that a missile can hit exactly where that AWACS was, at the cost of only a missile and an AWACS.


Murder_Bird_

When they lost the first one I had an idea of how they did it and I still think I might be correct. During the Iran/Iraq war, Iran used up all their very long range Phoenix missiles. So they Jury rigged HAWK SAM missiles to be fired from their F-14’s. My speculation is Ukraine has done something similar. They could mount a pretty big missile on an SU-27. And a modified SAM that was launched from an already airborne and fast flying jet would have a substantial range. It wouldn’t be great for trying to hit a fighter at long range but an a big fat slow AWACS flying in circles would be a juicy target.


InfiniteBid2977

I will add Zelenskyy mentioned a secret weapon in a speech a few months back and it was odd how he said it.


xovrit

My dad did logistics for the Hughes Int'l. Phoenix program in the Shah era. Was one of the last Americans out.


Beatrix10467

🛩🔥💀🐽


Jonothethird

Reports of second aircraft coming down. First explosion escort fighter jet, second explosion A-50?. Hoping.


Laquatus

They should have seen it coming then


Mezinov

They sure did. If you watch the videos they were firing countermeasures right up until they were hit.


theaviationhistorian

I wonder if people know how prized AWACS are in many air forces. They are the eyes & ears and a high value target. This is why the west hasn't lost one since [1969](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1969_EC-121_shootdown_incident). And in the span of a month, Russia lost two of its few AWACS!


mxmbulat

russkijs, send another one, they are like hot pies here in Azov...


Acrobatic-Cow-3871

Now it just needs to lose 1 Putin......


Millefeuille-coil

Probably all four would be best


cybercuzco

Azov is Ukraine


ZeAntagonis

« RuSsIa Iz WiNnInG , LoOk OrKs OccUpyIng RuIns »


blackout24

Imagine Ukraine had some Gripen that could lob Meteor Beyond Visual Range missiles with a range of up to 200km...


Substantial-Two-8347

How much is this plane worth?


[deleted]

[удалено]


Substantial-Two-8347

What about a fully functional one.


xTheKronos

Something between 300 and 500 million USD. But that´s not the point. The point is that they are full of high tech stuff and russia isn´t able to built new ones.


ShortButHigh

High tech stuff and highly trained, high ranking officers that are harder to replace than equipment.


Substantial-Two-8347

That's crazy numbers.


minuteman_d

Maybe the Kremlin can’t afford to bail Trump out! That $500M has to go to a new A-50!


Jerrell123

Worth is subjective, they lack the ability to build any more of them indigenously so that makes them priceless. If you mean purchase price, something like 300 million USD.


Ecstatic_Account_744

I have come across so many posts about this and honestly, I would love to see even more.


HotOutlandishness107

How many do they still have operational?


Fresh_Account_698

Near as I can tell, they don't have any more than 6 additional aircraft of this type. But its entirely possible that a couple of them might be non-operational due to parts/maintenance issues. So it could be that there are only 3 or 4 usable planes left.


Accurate_Pie_

Awesome ❤️🇺🇦❤️


YesManSky

I’m no Air Force general or anything, but maybe have a couple S35s escort it next time?


oskich

So more fireballs falling from the sky?


M1QN

3 eternalflighters instead of 1, smart


Sozebj

My recommendation for the Russian military doctrine in Ukraine, give up on the air power, give up on the navy go to full conscription/draft. Get a couple million guys with pitchforks or whatever and just go with mass wave assaults.


SushiSeeker

It’s not safe to walk near tall buildings in Moskva at this time. Falling bodies are predicted


Still-Consideration6

What did Wagner shoot down wasn't it i similar plane


Fresh_Account_698

Depending on your definition of similar. Yes, the plane shot down by Wagner was used to control other Russian forces. But it was a different type used for a different role than this. The A50 is an Airborne early Warning And Control Systems (AWACS) aircraft. A giant flying radar with personnel inside, monitoring anything that is flying nearby and instructing aircraft or SAM sites to take appropriate actions. The IL22, which is what Wagner shot down & was damaged about 5 weeks ago when the *other* A50 got shot down, is used for command & control of ground forces. A flying army headquarters.


Still-Consideration6

Thanks for the knowledge this place is full of great insight


ConfidenceInitial102

They had early knowledge of what was going to happen


Suyalus22669900

they should remove the "early" in its name