«We didn't have time to take off»: details of the strike on the Ukrainian airfield in Mirgorod have become known

What awaits NATO F-16s in Ukraine

Video footage of a missile attack on a military airfield adjacent to the Industrial District of Mirgorod, Poltava Region, was widely circulated on social networks. The video recorded the destruction and damage of at least six Ukrainian Su-27 fighter jets. 

Photo: pixabay.com

Two Ukrainian information resources told how this happened. The official channel of the Ukrainian Air Force is laconic. At 15:38 he reported that a high-speed target was flying towards Mirgorod from the Kursk region. At 15:49 the target was observed in the Poltava region. At 16:21, the air raid warning sounded in the Poltava region.

The details were clarified by the unofficial channel “PPO-radar” (PPO – “anti-aircraft defense”, air defense). From the moment the ballistic missile was launched in the Kursk region to the first moment the fighters were hit at the airfield, literally 4 minutes passed. The alarm was declared at 15:31 after five tactical aircraft took off from a Russian airfield in the northwestern direction. With an interval of one second, two missiles were fired towards Mirgorod. They arrived at the airfield at 15:40. A minute later, our reconnaissance unmanned aerial vehicle over the airfield carried out additional reconnaissance and aimed a third missile at the target. Its launch was discovered at 15:47, and two minutes later the missile had already hit aircraft in the parking lots. At 15:50 it became known that it was an Iskander-M ballistic missile with a cluster warhead.

The obviousness of the destruction of the aircraft in the parking lots could not be denied. However, the command of the Air Force of the Ukrainian Armed Forces chose to remain silent, and former Air Force press secretary Yuri Ignat was assigned to make a consoling statement.

“When the enemy strikes, what can I say, attacks our airfields every day, trying to destroy Ukrainian aviation, and sometimes achieves his goal… we are ready to tear apart everyone and everything on social networks, I mean our commanders, that “we couldn’t , didn’t finish watching”, etc.,” he wrote on his page on the social network.

Ignat noted that the airfields are “under fire every day, every day under ballistics” (under attacks from Russian ballistic missiles). According to him, people locally are trying to save what remains. By the way, there is not much left and it is not known what condition it is in.

“I will not go into detail with what incredible efforts this is being done. This is a war and, unfortunately, it does not (do) without losses of equipment. This is me regarding the enemy attack on the Mirgorod airfield… There was an attack. There are certain losses… I ask leading media, bloggers, telegram channels to curb their emotions and respect our defenders! We already have enough politicians, deputies and “opinion leaders” who… disgrace the Ukrainian military in front of society and partners, this is completely irresponsible,” added the former Air Force representative.

He has not yet said anything about the “valiant » Ukrainian air defense, which always reports 100% destruction of air targets. The same Su-27s should also participate in protecting ground targets from air attack. But they didn’t even have time to take off.

In a word, Western countries threatening to supply F-16s to Ukraine received an unambiguous signal from Russian rocket scientists: “Welcome! Just don’t be offended later.”