Late on 14 January, Russia reportedly lost an irreplaceable AWACS aircraft used to monitor the airspace in southern Ukraine and to guide Russia’s multiple air attacks.

The Beriev A-50 (NATO reporting name: Mainstay) is one of Russia’s most valuable air assets: it’s a Soviet-era airborne early warning and control aircraft (AWACS) based on the Ilyushin Il-76 transport airplane. In total, between 30 and  40 of those were produced as of 1992. According to Military Ballance, Russia had only nine operational aircraft of this kind as of 2022.

On 14 January at 22:47, Olga Honharenko, the radio monitoring account on X/Twitter, reported that “Russian AWACS A-50 has fallen near Berdiansk,“ later adding, “Yes of course it was by the meaning of ‘shot down’,“ and mentioning its board number RF-50601.

At 23:00, Serhii Bratchuk, the spokesman for the Odesa Oblast Military Administration Head, said that “sources” reported the “disappearance from radars” of the Russian A-50  in the skies over the sea of Azov.

The official also added that a Russian IL-22 air control center aircraft that accompanied the A-50 was also hit and was trying to reach the nearest airfield for an emergency landing but allegedly disappeared from radars near Kerch, occupied Crimea.

“According to preliminary data, the information has been confirmed, so we are waiting for comments from the Air Force. If we talk about the AWACCS, only ≈30 units were manufactured. It’s a very ‘fat’ target,” Bratchuk updated.

At noon on 15 January, the Ukrainian Army’s Commander-in-Chief Valerii Zaluzhnyi confirmed the destruction of Russia’s A-50 and IL-22 over the Sea of Azov.

“The Air Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine destroyed an enemy A-50 long-range radar detection aircraft and an enemy IL-22 airborne control center,” Zaluzhnyi wrote.