Panic in the Kremlin over F-16s: additional equipment has been deployed to the Kerch Bridge. Is it following the Russian ship?
6 August 2024 15:15
РОЗБІР ВІД 
The F-16s are in Ukraine, and in Moscow, there is unprecedented panic among propagandists and the Kremlin elite. In Russia, the first target for the US fighter jets is the Kerch Bridge. The hysteria ranges from “the Ukrainian Armed Forces did not receive enough fighters” to “we expect a massive raid on the Crimean bridge”. Komersant ukrainskyi
The Kremlin’s chief propagandist Vladimir Solovyov predicts that after larger-scale attacks by drones on Russian border regions, missiles on the temporarily occupied territories, and after strikes on the Crimean air defence system, we should expect a massive attack on the Crimean bridge.
“The F-16s recently received by the Ukrainian Armed Forces may be involved in this attack, if they are equipped with long-range AIM-120 and AIM-174B missiles and GBU-53/B planning bombs. This strike will be carried out by the US and NATO reconnaissance airspace group over the Black Sea. The Russian VKS Air Defence Command needs to have a plan for the emergency reinforcement of the air defence grouping on the peninsula”,
propagandist Solovyov
The reaction of the Russian authorities was voiced by the dictator’s spokesman, Dmitry Peskov. He indignantly threatened that “aircraft will be shot down and destroyed”.
How can F-16s be involved in the destruction of the Crimean bridge?
The F-16 is just a flying platform. In order to hit the Crimean bridge, missiles are needed, explains Roman Svitan, a colonel in the Armed Forces of Ukraine and a former fighter pilot-instructor, specifically for Komersant ukrainskyi . For example, an effective strike would require the American JASSM precision air-to-surface cruise missile. It is not yet known whether we have them, Svitan notes.
“The Russians understand that this ‘slingshot’ [F-16 – ed.] can bring some kind of combat unit to the Kerch bridge and understand that they must also transfer such missiles. We will find out if the F-16s have delivered precision cruise missiles when the Crimean bridge goes down.”
colonel Roman Svitan, Ukrainian Armed Forces
Pilot Svitan believes that it is quite possible that the F-16s will target the Crimean bridge.
Destruction of the Crimean bridge is a political decision
Aviation expert Konstantin Krivolap in an exclusive commentary for Komersant ukrainskyi said that the destruction of the Kerch bridge is a purely political decision.
“Preliminary calculations for the destruction of the Kerch Bridge have already been made. The best way to destroy such structures is to strike with a small but accurate atomic bomb. I am sure we will not use such means.”
Kostyantyn Kryvolap
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Ukraine already has weapons that can strike the illegal construction in Ukrainian Crimea, says aviation expert Kryvolap.
“The Taurus missile warhead consists of two parts. One part breaks the surface layer of concrete, and the other part goes deeper into the crushed concrete mixture and detonates. This is a specific warhead that has almost no analogues.”
Kostyantyn Kryvolap
The main thing, says the aviation expert, is to bring the right amount of explosives to a specific location. The further you get from the target, the more explosives you need. An example is to strike with precision bombs based on GBU-39 (a 110-kilogram aerial bomb with a length of 1 metre 80 centimetres). According to Kryvolap, it is theoretically possible to shoot down such a bomb using enemy air defences, but he has never actually seen such cases.
Is Ukraine postponing the destruction of the Crimean bridge?
According to Ukrainian Navy spokesman Dmytro Pletenchuk, the illegally built Crimean bridge is doomed to be destroyed, but there are reasons to delay this step.
“They periodically bring the latest air defence systems to Crimea: S-400 Triumph, S-500 Prometheus. They are actually brought into the strike zone. Why should we prevent the Russian occupiers from disposing of [the equipment] in this way, by pulling it out of other locations? Sometimes it is surprising how hard they do this, given that something explodes in Russia itself from time to time.”
dmytro Pletenchuk, Ukrainian Navy spokesman
So, presumably, for the time being, the Ukrainian Navy will work on the disposal of Russian air defence systems in Crimea.
However, against the backdrop of all the forecasts, the Russian invaders continue to build fortifications near the Kerch Bridge. In particular, on 5 August, it became known that two floating cranes were already operating near the illegal structure. Tugboats were also seen moving, according to the Krymskiy Viter Telegram channel. Thus, the intrigue around one of the most strategic objects of this war is only getting more intense.
Author: Anastasia Fedor
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