Air Strikes by VKS & SyAAF, 5 June 2017

The day began with a L-39 taking off from Tiyas AB at 00.02hrs. This turned towards north-east, i.e. almost certainly went fighting the…

The day began with a L-39 taking off from Tiyas AB at 00.02hrs. This turned towards north-east, i.e. almost certainly went fighting the Daesh. The Russians followed by a single take-off from Hmemmem AB around 01.16. Four minutes later, one of their aircraft passed high above Houla in south-eastern direction, apparently flying towards Dera’a. Additional fighter-bombers were launched from Hmemmem at 01.23, 01.47, 02.19, and around 03.00, when one of Russian reconnaissance aircraft took-off (this was noted above Lataminah at 03.42).

Tiyas launched a Su-24 at 04.59, and Dmeyr one at 05.17. Both turned in northern direction. Hama launched its usual ‘early morning helicopter’ quite late yesterday: only at 05.29.

Dmeyr then went into action launching a MiG-23 at 08.12: this was wrongly identified as ‘Su-22’ by the observer. Actually, this was the MiG-23ML ‘2797‘ (overhauled at Krasnodar, in Russia, in 2008). It attacked the FSyA units near Dakwa, and was apparently shot down by flak. Pilot — Colonel Kamil Sumayta — attempted to eject, but did so too late: he was KIA (he was posthumously advanced in rank to Brigadier-General, which is why he’s usually cited as such in reports on the social media).

Video showing the crash site (GRAFFIC!!):

Meanwhile, Tiyas launched another Su-24, at 08.22.

At 11.55 (note a break of three hours: seems, the SyAAF stopped activity after Sumayta got shot down), a single VKS fighter-bomber launched from Hmemmem AB. Tiyas then launched the next ‘wave’ of Su-24s: one at 12.19, another at 12.36, a third took off from Dmeyr at 12.50, one more from Tiyas at 13.35, another from Tiyas at 14.02, and a Su-22 from the same air base at 14.03. Dmeyr launched one Su-24 at 15.13, and Tiyas added an additional Su-24 at 15.18, then a Su-22 at 15.37, and another at 16.46.

A Russian fighter-bomber was noticed high above Houla at 13.23, flying in south-eastern direction. This one bombed something in Dera’a area, too. Showing how anything else but ‘intensive’ the Russian flying these days is, the next VKS fighter-bomber launched only at 17.06. Namely, most of aircraft in question have bombed the Dera’a area - not ‘Daesh’, as might be expected (and is still much-claimed in the social media). At least one provided CAS for the Daesh by bombing FSyA and civilians in Tafas, which is on the frontline between insurgents and the local branch of the Daesh in SW Syria. Another deployed CBUs to hit ash-Sheyfouniyah, in Eastern Ghouta. So much about Assadist and Russian ‘war on terror’…

The first helicopter to launch from as-Safira in days did so at 17.25hrs. It went in eastern direction. Also during the afternoon, an Iranian C-130 dropped supplies for besieged Fouah and Kefraya:

Around 19.00hrs, a Russian reconnaissance aircraft was observed while circling over southern Idlib.

Evening began by a single L-39 launching from Kweres AB at 20.14hrs. Then a Russian fighter-bomber was observed while passing high above Idlib at 20.25, a Su-24 launched from Dmeyr at 20.44hrs, one L-39 from Hama at 20.49 (this attacked the Kfar Zita area, few minutes later), a Su-24 from Tiyas at 21.37, and another L-39 from Shayrat at 22.07.

The day ended with some more-intensive flying. The Russians launched one fighter-bomber from Hmemmem AB at 22.18, Kweres launched one L-39 at 22.29, Russians followed with another take-off at 23.08, one at 23.11, and Kweres launched another L-39 at 23.39.

Totals

VKS

fighter-bombers: 11

helicopters: 0

UAVs: 4

recce: 2

SyAAF

L-39s: 5

helicopters: 2

MiG-21s: 0

MiG-23s: 1

Su-22s: 3

Su-24s: 11

(Note: due to much too sporadic reports about their operations, my statistics is not including flights by IRIAF’s C-130s. Although three of these are known to be forward deployed at Damascus International Airport, most of their activity remains unknown.)