Ukraine Loses 17% of its F-16 Force And Other Bad News (For Ukraine, that is)
Well, that did not take too long. The first of Ukraine’s six F-16 combat jets is kaput, along with the Ukrainian pilot. Several possibilities for its demise — it was destroyed by Russian missiles while in the hangar, or the plane was shot down while trying to fend off the Russian drone/missile attack on Monday, or the pilot panicked and crashed while trying to engage a missile. Who knows? But this much I do know — cue up Freddy Mercury, it is time for some Queen.
My friend, Stephen Bryen, provides an excellent summary of the various accounts of what may have happened. Read it here. One thing we know for certain — a year’s worth of training a Ukrainian pilot is flushed down the toilet.
Things are not going any better for Ukraine on the ground. A year ago, Russian progress on the ground was about one kilometer per week. The movement was glacial because pitched battles were fought inside heavily bunkered cities. Today? Russia is advancing as much as 11 square kilometers per day. The Ukrainian positions in the Donbass are crumbling rapidly and Russia no longer finds it necessary to level a city and turn it into a pile of rubble.
Here is a summary of the latest activity:
🔹Russian Troops, at night and during the day, launched several attacks on enemy-controlled territory. Explosions and air defence operations were recorded in #KrivoyRog and several settlements in the #Kiev region, as well as in #Sumy.
🔹In the #Kursk region, the enemy continues to accumulate reserves and does not stop attacks in the #Sudzha and #Korenevo regions. There are battles near #Korenevo and #Olgovka; several enemy assault groups have been destroyed near #Borki and #Martynovka.
🔹In the #Kupyansk-#Svatovo section, Russian troops advanced in the area of #Peschanoye and #Tabayevka, as well as near #Sinkovka and, according to some reports, liberated #Stelmakhovka.
🔹In the #Toretsk sector, #Druzhba has been almost completely liberated. Fighting is taking place on the outskirts of the #Dzerzhinsk administration and in the east of #Dzerzhinsk (#Toetsk) itself.
🔹On the North #Avdeyevka front, the offensive of Russian troops also continues, the waste heap and the Novogrodovskaya Mine were captured, which confirms control over #Novogrodovka. An assault is underway on #Selidovo, and, according to some reports, on #Ukrainsk.
The Judge, Ray and I did our Friday Roundtable a day early. Judge Nap and John Mearsheimer are headed to Texas tomorrow to speak at the Ron Paul Institute.