[VIDEO] Aircraft Shortages Cripple Russia’s Military Transport Operations

Russia’s military transport aviation is facing a severe crisis, exacerbated by outdated equipment, production failures, and ongoing technical challenges. Ukrainian military and political observer Oleksandr Kovalenko has pointed out that this situation has become increasingly evident since the start of Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine. While much attention has been directed toward tactical aviation, transport aircraft play a crucial role in supplying Russian troops, raising the question of how effective Russia’s transport aviation really is.

The backbone of Russia’s military transport fleet is the Il-76 aircraft. Despite having 130 such planes in 2022, only around 60 percent are in working condition. This is primarily due to poor maintenance and a lack of regular upgrades, leading to a high failure rate and increasing losses, both in combat and as a result of Ukrainian drone strikes.

Production of new Il-76 aircraft has also been sluggish. The Ulyanovsk factory has only managed to deliver 20 Il-76MD-90A units in recent years. This slow pace is due to low technological capacity and persistent defects in production, particularly in engines. Meanwhile, Russia’s attempts to develop a lighter military transport aircraft, the Il-112V, have been a failure. The project was supposed to replace older models but suffered from severe technical issues, including faulty engines and aerodynamic flaws, which ultimately led to a crash in 2021.

With Western technology now out of reach due to sanctions, Russia’s ability to produce new military transport aircraft has been severely hampered, and the modernization of existing ones is proving to be an uphill battle.

Russia’s aviation failures are part of a broader pattern of weaknesses in its military forces. This is evident across its army, navy, and air force. Ukrainian forces, despite their initial disadvantage in the war, have made significant gains. The Ukrainian Navy has managed to destroy at least 20 percent of the Russian Black Sea Fleet, an outcome that few anticipated. Similarly, Ukrainian ground forces have inflicted severe losses on Russian troops in the Donbas region, where fighting remains intense.

The Ukrainian Air Force has also proven to be highly effective. Despite being outnumbered at the start of the war, it inflicted heavy losses on Russian aviation even before receiving American F-16 fighter jets. Since the beginning of the year, Ukrainian air defense systems have successfully shot down two Russian A-50 surveillance aircraft and an Il-22 command aircraft. These high-value assets had been deployed near the front lines in an attempt to evade detection but were swiftly neutralized by Ukrainian forces. Additionally, more than a dozen Russian Su-34 fighter-bombers and at least one Su-35 fighter jet have been shot down in recent months, according to the Ukrainian General Staff.