Ukraine Su-27 Fighter Jet Engages 'Russian Target' in Rare Intercept Video

New footage has emerged purportedly showing a Ukrainian fighter jet firing on a Russian target at low altitude, as the battle for control of Ukraine's skies continues despite Russian numerical superiority in terms of aircraft.

A video posted to the Karymat Telegram channel on Tuesday and shared on social media shows what appears to be a Sukhoi Su-27 fighter jet in Ukrainian colors flying low over an unidentified area, firing a missile towards a target before banking away. It is not clear what the jet was intercepting, but the Karymat channel said it had fired an "air-to-air missile" at "an enemy air target."

Newsweek is unable to independently verify the footage and has contacted the Ukrainian Defense Ministry by email to request comment.

The aerial battle over Ukraine remains fierce more than 18 months into Russia's full-scale invasion. Moscow's inability to establish air superiority in the opening portion of the war is one of its most notable military failures.

Russian cruise missiles and drones still regularly crisscross Ukrainian skies on their way to targets nationwide but Russian aircraft now rarely risk venturing too far into Kyiv's territory. The danger has only increased over the course of the war with the arrival of Western air defense systems, among them several American-made Patriot missile batteries.

The Oryx open-source intelligence website has confirmed 85 destroyed Russian aircraft since the launch of Russia's full-scale invasion on February 24, 2022, with a further eight damaged. Among those lost and damaged are 30 Su-25 close air support aircraft, 11 Su-30SM multirole aircraft and 21 Su-34 strike aircraft.

Oryx lists 102 destroyed Russian helicopters, with another 28 damaged and two captured, a significant portion of which were victims of the first known Ukrainian use of the U.S.-made MGM-140 Army Tactical Missile System—known as ATACMS—on airfields in occupied Luhansk and Berdyansk.

Ukraine's tally of Russian losses runs to much higher figures, with 320 military planes and 324 helicopters claimed destroyed by Kyiv's forces.

Ukraine's air force has also suffered from more than 18 months of combat, with many experienced pilots lost in the desperate opening days of the invasion when Kyiv's forces appeared doomed to defeat. As is the case across its military branches, Ukraine's numerical inferiority in aircraft and pilots means their losses are more strategically costly.

Oryx lists 75 destroyed, one damaged, and one captured Ukrainian aircraft since February 2022. Among those are 22 MiG-29 fighters, 12 Su-27 fighters, and 17 Su-25 close air support aircraft.

Ukraine's air force is hoping to soon buoy is ageing, largely Soviet-era fleet with NATO fighter jets. Ukrainian pilots will soon begin learning to fly the American-made F-16, with a coalition of 11 nations—led by the U.S.—committed to training pilots and maintenance staff. Instruction of the first batch is due to begin this month at the Morris Air National Guard Base in Arizona.

It is unclear when the first NATO-supplied F-16s will see combat in Ukraine. The Netherlands and Denmark have both agreed to donate their fleets—up to 61 aircraft between the two nations—to Kyiv. It is expected that the first deliveries will take place in 2024.

Belgium has said it will send F-16 aircraft in 2025, contingent on the agreement of whatever government emerges from the May 2024 election in the country and depending on how quickly replacement F-35 fighter jets can be delivered.

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has said that the "earliest is next spring when we can see an initial capability" of Ukrainian pilots flying F-16s in combat.

Moscow has repeatedly expressed its frustration with the purported provision of advanced fighter jets to Ukraine. Throughout the war, the Kremlin has claimed that Western military aid to Kyiv is prolonging and deepening the conflict, while simultaneously framing its full-scale invasion as a pre-emptive defensive war against NATO.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko said in May that the donation of Western fighters to Kyiv "involves enormous risks," and "will be taken into account in all our plans."

President Vladimir Putin has also spoken out, saying last month: "They are going to supply F-16s. Will it change? No. This simply prolongs the conflict."

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