Watch this interesting video of the Russian planes (with Red Star painted over) at work in Syria

October 2, 2015 Russia, Syria, Troubled Areas, War on ISIS
David Cenciotti

Take a look at what happens inside Latakia airbase, where the Russian Air Force contingent is based.

The following exclusive video by RT brings you inside al-Assad International Airport, near Latakia, where Russian Air Force contingent, currently made of 36 combat planes, is based.

The footage is extremely interesting as it clearly shows the six Su-34 Fullback aircraft returning from the first combat sorties against Islamic State targets in Syria.

A closer look at the warplanes provides the confirmation that all the aircraft, including the Su-25s and the Su-34s, were removed the standard Russian Air Force markings and the typical Red Star: most probably the Russians don’t want their symbol to be shown off along with the wreckage of a plane in case one is shot down or crashes in Syria.

By the way, the insignia were overpainted on the Su-30SMs and the Su-24Ms as well, even if these are not clearly visible in this video; however there are screenshots in the social media that prove the same applies to Flankers and Fencers.

Su-34 tail

Su-25 Latakia

This is not the first time aircraft taking part in real operations are stripped off their national markings. UAE F-16s deployed to Jordan to take part in Operation Inherent Resolve didn’t wear the national flag while some U.S. drones deployed in sensitive areas perform their clandestine missions “unmarked.”

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About David Cenciotti
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David Cenciotti is a journalist based in Rome, Italy. He is the Founder and Editor of “The Aviationist”, one of the world’s most famous and read military aviation blogs. Since 1996, he has written for major worldwide magazines, including Air Forces Monthly, Combat Aircraft, and many others, covering aviation, defense, war, industry, intelligence, crime and cyberwar. He has reported from the U.S., Europe, Australia and Syria, and flown several combat planes with different air forces. He is a former 2nd Lt. of the Italian Air Force, a private pilot and a graduate in Computer Engineering. He has written five books and contributed to many more ones.

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6 Comments

  2. It seems strange to me to see only “Dumb bomb” carried by the Russian Planes. They have plenty of smart weapons (KAB 500 and so on) in their inventory. Does anyone know why they do not use them ? Br

    • Because dumb bombs are all that is needed with good intel. Smart bombs are useless when you bomb dumb targets with dumb intel. You’ve got to wonder where Russia is finding all these ISIS targets when the Americans have had a year to find and bomb them by now.

  3. They’ve said this from the start. Without Assad, Syria would become another failed state like Afghanistan, Iraq and Libya.

  4. It only makes sense to use a camouflaged combat paint scheme. The Russians aren’t as stupid as Americans would like to think they are.

  5. Russians have changed the airforce logo to the red start some time ago. And i think that the reason some logos are missing is because they did not have time to paint them.

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