A fair question is whether this one (or these two) A-50’s were useable in the 1st place? Possibly they were just parts planes? Granted that’s still significant since Russia has so few of these working.
At what point does Russia decide it can’t risk losing any more A-50’s to Ukraine? And just how far back would Russia have to keep them?
Russia had planned more A-50Us but can no longer afford to build them or get necessary components from the West due to sanctions. Moreover, the ongoing need for spare parts seems likely to lead to a gradual deterioration in the remaining aircraft.