Ukrainian intelligence downs Russian An-72 aircraft worth $4.5m near Moscow
- 20 December, 11:04
A Russian An-72 Aircraft military transport aircraft worth $4.5 million was destroyed at an airfield near Moscow last week, Ukrainian Main Directorate of Intelligence, known as HUR, reported on Friday.
“On December 12, 2024, at the Ostafyevo airfield in the Moscow region, an explosion occurred - the main power unit of a military transport An-72 aircraft belonging to the Russian naval fleet was destroyed,” the intelligence agency said in a statement published on Friday.
Worth around $4.5 million, An-72 is a military transport aircraft whose primary purpose is to transport military cargo, equipment, and personnel over short and medium distances, including operations from unprepared airfields.
It should be noted that the Ukrainian intelligence has carried out operations to destroy a large number of Russian military hardware and equipment since the start of the full-fledged invasion of the country in February 2022. Among these operations is the destruction of Russian Su-30SM fighter jet worth $50 million in September this year. The fighter jet stationed in Russian-annexed Crimea Peninsula was detonated with the use of man-portable air defence system, MANPADS, in the Black Sea region.
A month later, the Ukrainian intelligence destroyed a Tu-134 aircraft at Russia’s Orenburg-2 military airfield. The aircraft was used by transportation of senior personnel of the Russian Defence Ministry.
