Shootdown
Mirage 2000-5F pilots score first post-WW2 aerial victories for France
Two French Air and Space Force pilots flying Mirage 2000-5F multi-role fighters have scored the first successful aerial victories against enemy aircraft since the end of World War 2, after the two jets engaged in air-to-air combat with Houthi-operated kamikaze drones over the Red Sea on March 9
Ukraine claims it shot down 13 Russian military jets in February
As of February 29, the Ukrainian Air Force (UkrAF) has claimed to have shot down a total of 13 Russian military fixed-wing aircraft since January 30, marking the highest number of Russian military jet losses in a single month and the greatest increase in results for Ukraine’s anti-air operations since October 2022
Moscow suffers blow as Ukraine downs two Russian command aircraft in one night
While operating over the waters of the Sea of Azov at approximately 2110hrs (local time) on the night of January 14, two high-value aircraft of the Russian Aerospace Forces were struck by Ukrainian missiles, with one crashing and the other being forced to make an emergency landing
Israel scores F-35's first confirmed cruise missile kill
An Israeli Air Force-operated F-35I Adir (or ‘Mighty One’) has been credited with scoring the type’s first known air-to-air kill against a cruise missile on October 31, probably using an AIM-9X Sidewinder short-range air-to-air missile to achieve this feat
F-22 marks first ‘kill’ as US deals with intruding Chinese spy balloon
After spending four days controversially floating across the continental US, the Chinese surveillance balloon saga reached its climax on February 4, when it was finally shot down by a USAF-operated F-22A Raptor – marking the type’s first official ‘kill’ in operational service
Brazilian A-29s shoot down drug smuggling plane following airspace intrusion
Brazilian Air Force-operated Embraer A-29A/B Super Tucanos intercepted and shot down an unresponsive light aircraft in the northern area of Mato Grosso on September 7
ANALYSIS: USAF F-15E shoots down Iranian drone over Syria
When an Iranian drone approached US special forces operating in Syria in late August, a Boeing F-15E Strike Eagle assigned to the 48th Fighter Wing was scrambled to shoot it down. We delve into the shootdown and the Iranian drone problem