Russian Su-34 Supersonic Fighter-Bomber Shot Down by F-16: Reports

Newsweek ^ | 10/12/2024 | Brendan Cole

[marcusmaximus]

One of Moscow's fighter jets has been shot down by Ukrainian forces, according to a military blogger with links to the Russian air force. Another pro-Moscow milblogger said that the Sukhoi Su-34 aircraft had been downed by a Western-supplied F-16.

Neither report has been confirmed and Newsweek has contacted the Russian and Ukrainian defense ministries for comment over the unverified claims which have sparked much speculation on social media.

The Telegram channel Fighterbomber posted on Saturday a message which looked like a tribute to a lost Su-34 fighter jet. Next to an image of the supersonic medium-range fighter bomber, which has been a mainstay of Russia's aviation efforts in the war it started, it said, "the earth is the sky, brothers."

The pro-Moscow Telegram channel VDV for Honesty and Justice shared the post, adding more detail.

"Urgent!!! Our Su-34 has been shot down. The crew was killed," it said, adding that the aircraft "was apparently shot down by an F-16, which was over enemy-controlled territory."

It also said that the plane had been shot down during an air bomb drop "approximately 50 km (30 miles) from the front line," without giving details of where it had got the information from.

"Soon there will be more such losses. NATO has sent F-16s out to hunt," it added, "as a result, our infantry losses will increase."

[PIF]

Translation:
Fighterbomber
Earth sky, brothers... © 12.6K 11:09

L VDV for Honesty and Justice Urgently!!!

Our Su-34 was shot down. The crew died. The plane was shot down during the Dumping of the FAB from the UMPC, about 50 km from the front line. Our Su-34 was shot down by an apparently F-16, which was above the territory controlled by the enemy.

Soon there will be more such losses. NATO launched the F-16 for hunting.

Now there will be fewer FABs on Khokhlas. Consequently, the losses of our infantry will increase.

[House Atreides]

Thank you for yet another post from Newsweek. We look forward to their always absolutely truthful reporting. We need no other source of our information! /sarc

[TheThirdRuffian]

I would opine you are correct.

What the F16 remains is a nice platform for fantastic A to A missiles.

The story here (if true) is the effectiveness of such missiles.

[TheThirdRuffian]

“10-1”

I’ve looked for Ukrainian F16 losses. It looks like they’ve lost one either due to pilot error or friendly fire, it’s not clear.

Where are you getting 10-1? I can’t find it anywhere.

[lurk]

We are still using the term supersonic, like it’s 1965 and extra neat.

Supersonic just means that it is able to go faster than 760mph, if it wants to. Among fighter jets it is ubiquitous, and not really meaningful in combat effectiveness or survival.

[Jeff Chandler]

the earth is the sky

?

[larrytown]

which was above the territory controlled by the enemy.

Curious phrasing.

[DFG]

[HereInTheHeartland]

Pooti Poot lost another toy?

[VAFreedom]

that’s impossible, in world of tanks and world of warships games all russian vehicles are vastly superior than the western ones.

[PIF]

Curious phrasing.
—

Just typical Russian-English translation - its the way they think

[EnderWiggin1970]

There have been a couple reported Kinzhal strikes on airfields basing F-16's, whereas this is the first time I recall a report of an F-16 doing anything. The missile strikes reportedly damaged/destroyed a couple F-16s each. Don't take me too literally, it's more a rough range than a precision estimate.

The F-16 is a 40+ year old airframe, with its effectiveness dependent on upgrades, pilot training and support. Even if the "package" Ukraine is using is top-end, it's still going to be vulnerable to the degraded air defenses Ukraine has been left with. (Another Patriot battery was taken out yesterday, for example.) As I once opined regarding the best way to take out a state of the art fighter, a "one-armed saboteur with a hand grenade" would be sufficient.

[Rockingham]

Russian fighter and fighter bomber aircraft are rugged, brutal designs that are technologically behind the times. In capable hands, F-16s with first rate missiles are more than a match.

[null and void]

Nazi tanks were technologically far superior to Soviet tanks.

Who won?

“Quantity has a quality all its own.” ~ Joseph Stalin

[Rockingham]

As even Stalin admitted, Russia would have lost to the Germans if they had not had US aid. Much of the quantity that Stalin cherished was made in Detroit, not in Russia.

[null and void]

Still quantity, albeit higher quality than Soviet quantity.

[Rockingham]

Without access to US and European suppliers, the industrial supply chains for the Russian military and civilian economies are breaking down. A lack of ball bearings, for example, is leading to failures in Russian rail carriage. There are many examples of these sorts of problems and they will become more acute in the coming year.

[null and void]

Yup! These days precision systems require quality to make the quantity. Quantity was a bigger issue in the World Wars.

Putin is fighting Ukraine as if it’s The Great War.

Russia’s problem.

Not my circus, not my monkeys.

[Rockingham]

The problem for Putin is that, like Germany in World War One, he has put Russia into a war of attrition. The odds are against success in that Ukraine and her allies have far larger economic and industrial resources than Russia. As with Germany in 1918, economic and political collapse beckons for Russia. Her thousand casualties a day and economic strain are simply not sustainable.