Horror moment Ukrainian fighter jet explodes in a fireball after being shot down by a Russian ‘Axehead’ missile during a dogfight
THIS was the horror moment a Ukrainian fighter jet exploded in a fireball after being shot down by a Russian “Axehead” missile.
Shocking footage appears to show a MiG-29 being chased by a Su-35S fighter jet Putin’s air force and hit with a long-range Vympel R-37 air-to-air missile.
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The Ukraine fighter The plane bursts into flames and then crashes to the ground, leaving a trail of black smoke.
Ukrainian pilot and father of one Major Andrey Tkachenko, 33, nickname Tkach, from the Lviv region, died in the horror explosion.
The dogfight took place over Ukraine’s semi-occupied Donetsk region on Friday, but footage has only now emerged.
Respected aircraft commander Tkachenko has been protecting Ukraine’s eastern flank since Putin’s first invasion in 2014.
Defense journalist Babak Taghvaee reported: “Unfortunately, the pilot of the MiG-29 of the Ukrainian Air Force, which was shot down by a Su-35S fighter jet Russian The air force in eastern Ukraine lost his life on March 8.
‘His name is Andriy Tkachenko.
“His plane was shot down by an R-37M long-range air-to-air missile.”
The R-37 is also known by its name NATO reporting name AA-13 Ax head.
The loss of the aircraft was reported by the Russian Ministry of Defense, but was initially not recognized by Kiev.
It comes as Ukraine has created an incredible new line of defense against Putin’s forcescomplete with 42,000 concrete “dragon’s teeth” scattered along barbed wire-lined trenches.
Zelenskiy’s army is preparing to face Russia’s latest assault in coming months, with a 900-kilometer-long wall of death made of anti-tank obstacles, underground bunkers and fortified trenches.
Running along the meat grinder’s front line are freshly dug trenches, concrete traps and underground command centers for Kiev’s brave troops.
Grim images from the ground show rows and rows of sharp-edged pyramid structures piercing the Ukrainian countryside in the battle against hotbeds.
The dragon’s teeth anti-tank barriers are designed to stop waves of Russian tanks as they roll across Ukrainian land – something Vlad’s army used against Ukraine during their 2023 counter-offensive.
Concrete defensive posts are also set up over large distances to prevent the Russians from advancing.
Putin’s three-tier system of trenches, tank traps and strong points is echoed in Ukraine’s new fortifications – and it could strengthen them enough to hold out.
A Dnipro official said that “strengthening the region’s defensive capacity is one of the priority areas” as they prepare for Mad Vlad’s next move.
Dnipro, in central Ukraine, ordered 42,000 dragon teeth and 14 sets of reinforced concrete structures for its defense efforts.
And in Zaporizhia, a whopping £27 million was earmarked for the same efforts.
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