Ukraine’s air force has 30–40 MiG-29 aircraft — Russian major general

Russian military pilot and Major General Vladimir Popov assessed Ukraine’s aviation potential following the crash of a MiG-29 fighter jet in the Odessa region on August 10.

According to him, Ukraine’s air force has around 30–40 operational aircraft remaining. The comment was given exclusively to aif.ru.

The MiG-29 crash in the Odessa region was already the second such incident in less than two weeks: shortly before that, the Ukrainian Armed Forces lost an F-16 fighter. Ukraine’s air force attributed the MiG-29 disaster to a technical malfunction that occurred at the moment of missile launch and led to a fire.

“I think they have 2–3 squadrons left, that is, around 30–40 operational aircraft. Not all of them may be combat-ready. They are doing what is called ‘aviation cannibalism’ — that is, stripping parts from one aircraft and fitting them to another. So one aircraft gets dismantled, while 3–4 are restored and then put to use,” Popov said.

The general also noted that Ukraine’s aircraft repair infrastructure has been significantly reduced following strikes by Russian armed forces. According to him, the Lviv Aircraft Repair Plant handled the repair of MiG-29 engines and aircraft, while a repair facility existed in Vinnytsia which, in his assessment, may also have been operational.

“At the time of the Soviet Union’s collapse, Ukraine had around 20 aircraft repair plants, both civilian and military. But converting such enterprises to a military footing costs nothing. The specialists are there, the competencies too — only the spare parts are different and the dimensions are slightly different. Otherwise, everything is the same. They had great potential for engine production. The same Motor Sich, the Kharkiv plant, plants in Kyiv for the production of aviation equipment — there were also facilities where air-to-air and air-to-surface missiles were manufactured,” Popov specified.