Air Strikes by VKS & SyAAF, 2 June 2017

2 June began with something really new: a series of take-offs by SyAAF’s Su-24s from Tiyas. The first got airborne at 02.37, another at…

2 June began with something really new: a series of take-offs by SyAAF’s Su-24s from Tiyas. The first got airborne at 02.37, another at 02.46, one more at 02.58, and the fourth at 03.32hrs. This is extremely unusual: at least I cannot recall that four take-offs by SyAAF Su-24s have been registered at that time of the day, or during the same night, in the last two years.

Another bit of ‘news’ is this photo of a SyAAF Su-24 armed with Kh-29 (AS-14) guided air-to-surface missile. So far, such weapons were deployed in very small numbers by the SyAAF: perhaps 4–6 — and then primarily by MiG-29s, back in 2015.

Two additional Su-24s got airborne from Tiyas at 10.12 and 10.25hrs, then four Su-22s from Shayrat at 11.28, 11.37, 11.48, and 11.50. One more Su-22 launched from Kweres AB at 11.54, a helicopter from as-Safira at 11.56, and another — fifth in total — Su-22 from Shayrat at 11.56.

That made the yesterday’s morning the most intensive for the SyAAF since early May.

The afternoon began by a take-off of a single helicopter from as-Safira at 12.08. This was followed by a Su-22 from Tiyas at 14.23, one Su-24 from Tiyas at 15.00 and another at 15.11.

Through all of this time, the Russians only flew UAVs over southern Idlib: it was only at 17.00hrs that a single aircraft took off from Hmemmem AB.

At 17.27, another Su-24 launched from Tiyas, followed by one more at 17.42, one at 18.25, and a MiG-23 from Hama at 19.04. One L-39 launched from Shayrat at 21.39, and one from Kweres at 21.45. Then the SyAAF’s Su-24s continued their nocturnal activity: one took off from Tiyas at 21.49, and another at 22.32. That, however, was ‘all’ there was for yesterday.

Totals

VKS

Fighter-bombers: 1

UAVs: 3

SyAAF

L-39: 2

Helicopters: 2

MiG-21: 0

MiG-23: 1

Su-22: 7

Su-24: 13