Iranian Shahed 136 downed Su-27, Ukraine confirms pilot death
KYIV, UKRAINE — Aviation squadron commander Major Denis Kirilyuk of the Ukrainian Air Force has been shot down. This happened in the last 24 hours. The news was officially confirmed by the 831st Tactical Aviation Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. In its press release, the 831st Tactical Brigade did not provide details on how the Ukrainian pilot was shot down.
At the same time, Russian media outlet Izvestia claimed that Major Denis Kirilyuk was shot down by an Iranian Shahed 136 [Geran-2] drone. The media cited a press release from the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation. This press release says that earlier the Russian armed forces were able to shoot down one Ukrainian Mi-8 helicopter.
The Ukrainian pilot has 80 combat missions, and in 2022 he was awarded the Order of Bravery by the Ukrainian President Mr. Volodymyr Zelensky.
Military claims one thing, the governors another
The 831st Tactical Brigade reported that on the night of March 27, the Russian Armed Forces carried out an air attack. Shahed 136/131 drones as well as aerial bombs were used in the attack. The attack took place in the Kherson region. According to the 831st Tactical Brigade, 13 Shahed 136 drones, one Granat 4 reconnaissance drone, and two KAB participated in the attack with air support from Su-35 fighters.
“As a result of air combat with the forces and assets of the Air Force and the air defense systems of other components of the Air Force of Ukraine, 13 air targets were destroyed: 12 attacks UAVs Shahed-136/131 and one reconnaissance UAV Granat-4,” the 832st Tactical Brigade said.
However, a follower of the brigade on Facebook asked the following question: “If 12 out of 13 were overthrown, then why are seven governors writing that their infrastructure facilities have been damaged?”
Not for the first time
A downed Ukrainian warplane from a drone is no longer news in Ukraine, and in the world. If the information shared by the Russian Ministry of Defense is confirmed, the downed Su-27 will be the second documented case in Ukraine of a drone overtaking a combat aircraft.
The first was at the end of last year during a similar Russian attack. Then a Ukrainian MiG-29 pilot began a dogfight to shoot down a swarm of Stakhed 136 kamikaze drones. He allegedly managed to shoot down all of the drones. However, the latter proved to be fatal for the Ukrainian pilot. Debris from Shahed 136 hit the Ukrainian plane hard and brought it to the ground. However, the pilot managed to eject and stay alive.
2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine
On 21 February 2022, Russia claimed that Ukrainian shelling had destroyed an FSB border facility. Russia claimed that it had killed 5 Ukrainian soldiers. They tried to cross into Russian territory. Ukraine denied being involved in both incidents and called them a false flag.
On the same day, the Russian government formally recognized the self-proclaimed DPR and LPR. According to Putin not only in their de-facto controlled areas, but the Ukrainian Oblasts as a whole. Putin ordered Russian troops, including tanks, to enter the regions.
On 24 February 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered an invasion of Ukraine by Russian Armed Forces previously concentrated along the border. The invasion followed by targeted airstrikes of military buildings in the country, as well as tanks entering via the Belarus border.
Russia has so far not recognized the invasion of Ukraine as a “war”, although that is exactly what it is, claiming that it is a “special military operation”. According to the UN, a “special military operation” can only take place after a UN resolution. There is no such resolution. So this is an invasion and war against Ukraine.
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