Personnel shortage: Is Russia capable of replacing A-50 reconnaissance aircraft

On January 14, the A-50U reconnaissance aircraft was shot down and the IL-22 combat department was damaged. British intelligence confirmed the destruction of the A-50U, which makes the event unique. Sources of publication in the Ukrainian defense industry and Western experts say that the Kremlin will be difficult if it is not impossible to compensate for the loss. Western sanctions will greatly complicate the production of key technologies.

One source of the publication stated that the outflow of radar specialists since the beginning of a full -scale war has also launched the ability of the Russian Federation to replace specialists who died on the plane. "This loss will be difficult to replace due to the number of hardware" black boxes "in the A-50U aircraft of Intel and other Western manufacturers.

They are necessary for digital onboard electronic systems, but blocked for sale to Russia by sanction regimes," said Jake Mesi from the program Jaco The "advanced defense" of the Atlantic Council in Washington. In the Ukrainian defense sector, journalists were told that in the Russian Federation they are not even capable of "cannibalization" by making several faulty A-50 one. Russia has lost the possibility of building such aircraft before a full -scale war.

And besides the aircraft there is a problem with shots. According to the rector of the National Aviation Museum of Ukraine Valery Romanenko, 10-11 operators of the A-50 equipment will be replaced. Such specialists should be prepared for years, in the Russian Federation there are problems with this. We will remind, on January 22, the US General explained how the Armed Forces was knocked down by the A-50 reconnaissance aircraft.