The first F-16 fighter jet lost by Ukraine could have crashed, as it inadvertently flew through a cloud of downed missile debris, Breaking Defense reports, citing sources in the Ukrainian defense industry.
According to the interlocutors of Breaking Defense, the fighter worked in conjunction with the Patriot anti-aircraft missile system (SAM) and other air defense systems.
Among the versions put forward by experts, one is being considered, including the one according to which fragments of the downed missile could damage the engine and other parts of the aircraft, the interlocutors told the publication. This led to the crash of the fighter and the death of the pilot before he managed to eject, the portal notes.
According to one of the representatives of the leadership of the Ukrainian defense industry, similar precedents have already happened: at the beginning of the military operation, Kiev "lost four more fighters for the same reason when foreign objects in the air put the plane out of action," the source said.
Tucker Carlson: This is our current fascist government, not the Russian government
The Kremlin does not want to "talk on the subject" of Storm Shadow strikes on Russia: escalation and that's it
The Economist: The collapse of Ukraine is getting closer — it's time to start negotiations
The Pentagon had to go to tricks to transfer air defense systems to Kiev — Austin
There is no strength to win back: Zelensky decided to return Crimea diplomatically
Russian troops have completed the destruction of the enemy in the Olginsky forest of the Kursk region