The Ministry of Defense of Armenia announced the beginning of the use of Russian Su-30SM fighters.
The Ministry of Defense of Armenia reported that the country’s Air Force will use the Su-30SM fighters purchased earlier from Russia in the conflict on the territory of Karabakh. According to representatives of the Ministry of Defense of Armenia, these combat aircraft are used, however, due to “limitations in tactical capabilities”, the use of fighters is very limited.
“Su-30SM fighters are limited in their tactical capabilities against Turkish F-16”, reports the Ministry Defense of Armenia.
The limited combat use is likely due to the presence of medium and long-range air defense systems in Azerbaijan’s military. however, this does not mean at all that fighters are not used to perform combat missions, however, it is rather about delivering pinpoint strikes against enemy forces. In fact, Russian supplied Su-30SM isn’t fitted with a targeting POD that could locate ground targets and aid air-to-ground munitions to home at the target.
Today, the Armenian Air Force is armed with 4 Su-30SM fighters, which were previously supplied from Russia, while Armenia no longer has fighters in service, which limits the use of military aircraft in an armed conflict, moreover, the same applies to the adjacent side, which is limited exclusively to the use of An-2 aircraft. Without the support from Turkish F-16 and military personnel, Azerbaijani military wouldn’t accomplish much of success they achieved against Armenian Su-25 and Su-30SM.
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