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"Two Russian Il-76s Shot Down" in Ukraine, Combat Erupts in Kyiv
[Aviationist] As the sun rises on day three of the Ukrainian war with Russia, reports have surfaced that two Russian Ilyushin Il-76 heavy transports were shot down by Ukrainian air defenses. Russia has not acknowledged the loss of any of its Il-76 aircraft.

On Friday, Feb. 25, 2022, Ukrainian air defenses claimed to have shot down one Russian Il-76 transport near Vasylkiv, south of the capital in Kyiv. Ukrainian reports claimed the aircraft was carrying a "landing force" but did not specify any number of casualties or survivors from the reported incident.

The use of the Il-76 transport aircraft along with specially trained airfield seizure troops similar to U.S. Army Rangers is known as part of Russian military doctrine.

Following reports of this first Il-76 shoot-down incident, a "second Il-76" was reported to have been shot down over Bila Tserkya. The report originated from the Ukrainian State Special Communications Agency. Early reports did not suggest what mission this aircraft may have been performing and no specific reports of casualties or survivors has been provided as of this hour.

Both reports were later confirmed, at around 04.30UTC by AP:


Posted by: Besoeker 2022-02-26
http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=626111