Air Strikes by VKS & SyAAF, 4 June 2017
I can only continue wondering about continuous reporting in the social media about ‘heavy Russian air strikes’ against Daesh in response to…
I can only continue wondering about continuous reporting in the social media about ‘heavy Russian air strikes’ against Daesh in response to the latter’s advances in Dayr az-Zawr.
But then, It’s getting ever more obscure in this regards. Supposedly, the Daesh captured the Panorama roundabout, and the Driving School in the southern part of the western Assadist pocket; this in turn was denied by nearly all of Assadist sources, but nearly everybody is reporting ‘heavy air strikes’ — while there is no evidence for such.
Indeed, such VKS’ fighter-bombers based at Hmemmem AB like Su-25s, lack the range to reach Dayr az-Zawr. Su-24s, Su-30s, Su-34s and Su-35s can reach the place, no doubt. But, Su-24s are never flying there: only Su-34s do, usually escorted by a pair of Su-30s. Even then, there is very little reporting about any kind of activity from Hmemmem AB at all. On the contrary: back in April, the VKS was launching the same number of aircraft from that place within one hour (repeat, to make sure and to emphasise: within 1 hour) — like it launched the entire day, yesterday.
In detail… One Russian fighter-bomber took-off from Hmemmem at 00.05; Assadists followed by one Su-24 from Tiyas at 00.45, and one L-39 from Tiyas at 00.56. At 02.21, a single ‘Russian’ aircraft was reported as airborne over the Houla area and underway in direction of Dera’a or Bosra.
The next activity was recorded only around 09.43hrs, when a single UAV was sighted over the Jishr ash-Shughour area. It was over the same area that a (probably Russian) helicopter was reported around 10.39, and another around 10.42. Another UAV was sighted there around 11.20.
At 10.03, a single Su-22 launched from Shayrat AB. This was followed by another Su-22 from Shayrat at 10.35. Both went in northern — not eastern direction, BTW.
At 11.28, a single aircraft launched from Hmemmem AB; at 12.12 one MiG-21 from Hama AB, and the two Su-22s from Shayrat got airborne again at 12.53 and 13.20. Another VKS aircraft took off from Hmemmem AB at 13.29, and a MiG-23 from Hama at 14.33. Then a pair of Russian fighter-bombers launched from Hmemmem at 14.46.
Because Assadists and Russians are involved in so ‘intensive’, indeed, ‘heavy’ air strikes on Daesh in Dayr az-Zawr I guess, the next military-related take-off was recorded only at 16.05, when a Su-22 launched from Shayrat AB. Dmeyr then scrambled one Su-22 at 16.29, Tiyas a Su-24 at 16.37, and another at 16.54. Two additional Su-24s launched from that air base at 17.14 and 17.23.
But, if one thinks ‘all’ of these have bombed Daesh in Dayr az-Zawr, that’s dead wrong: instead, several of them (including a MiG-23BN from Dmeyr), bombed Dera’a, which was certainly hit heavier than the Daesh in Dayr az-Zawr, yesterday (that said, there is no evidence for 18 air strikes: rather for something like ’18 bombs’).
Also during the afternoon, at least two Assadists Mi-25s (probably from Almazza AB) bombed the Dera’a area. The fighting on the ground there is fierce, and the regime is hauling in ‘SAA reinforcements’ to that area. So much so, 26 insurgents and 10 Hezbollah, were reportedly killed the last few days. Damascus also didn’t re-deploy the 4th Division (which was never a part of the SAA, anyway) to attack Daesh — but, according to Assadists, this went towards Dera’a. Curiously, that ‘elite’ unit is now said to consist of such units like ‘Haydar al-Ameli Battalion of the Arab Nationalist Guard’, ‘Homeland Shield Forces’ and whoever else (I’m only surprised there are no reports it’s including combatants from Mars… well, that can still change)…
One Russian reconnaissance aircraft launched from Hmemmem AB at 18.18, and this was last sighted high above Sarqib around 19.10 hrs.
At 22.48, Russians launched one fighter-bomber from Hmemmem AB in south-eastern direction: this was followed by four fighter-bombers that got airborne at 22.52 (this was ‘intensive’: no four-ship scramble was recorded in nearly two months), and another single fighter-bomber at 22.52. These probably did bomb the Daesh — but, curiously, the Russian reconnaissance aircraft didn’t operate support any such operations against extremists: it remained airborne over Sarqib until at least 23.00hrs.
And that was that… Once again, based on available data, I simply do not understand what kind of ‘heavy air strikes on Daesh’ should either Assadists or the Russians have flown yesterday? About a dozen of sorties by the VKS, half a dozen by the SyAAF is neither ‘intensive’ nor ‘heavy’. Indeed, and just for example: as-Safira, which was launching up to 20 helicopter-strikes a day against Eastern Aleppo back in November (at least 1–2 of which were deploying chemical weapons), didn’t launch but one yesterday. Similarly, reports of this kind are, sorry, plain wrong: Assadists are using Kweres AB already since November 2015 (when they lifted Daesh’s siege of that place): L-39s based there were flying air strikes on Eastern Aleppo back in November and December that year, and again in November-December 2016, just for example. Su-22s are based there at least since February this year (and flew sporadic air strikes against insurgents in March and April this year; see earlier coverage). However, not one of these was reported as taking-off yesterday.
Totals
VKS
fighter-bombers: 12
helicopters: 2
UAVs: 4
recce: 1 (perhaps 2)
SyAAF
L-39s: 1
helicopters: 2
MiG-21s: 1
MiG-23s: 2
Su-22s: 7
Su-24s: 6