Harsh conditions in the Syrian desert are causing Russian warplanes to breakdown, impacting the nation's ability to conduct airstrikes in the region, a senior U.S. Defense official revealed.
Speaking under the condition of anonymity, a U.S. official told USA Today that nearly one-third of Russia's attack planes and half of its transport aircraft are grounded at any given time.
The dust in particular is making it difficult for Russians to fly, causing the number of airstrikes they have conducted to dip slightly since President Vladimir Putin deployed planes to an air base near Latakia, Syria, in September.
"They could have bad operating procedures, inadequate supplies of spare parts and support crews," Teal Group aviation analyst Richard Aboulafia said.
Russia's inexperience in deploying forces further than nearby areas like Ukraine and Georgia could also account for problems keeping planes in the air, he said, according to The Week.
"An awful lot of expeditionary warfare revolves around logistics," Aboulafia said. "A lot of it comes down to experience. They don't have that much of it."
Another unnamed official drew a parallel between the U.S. and Russian airforce policies, saying that for American warplanes, a readiness rate of less than 80 percent would attract attention from the military top brass. He did mention, however, that planes do typically break down in such conditions, and characterized mission readiness rates of less than 80 percent as a cause for concern, rather than alarm.
David Deptula, a retired Air Force general who led the planning for the aerial war against Iraq in Operation Desert Storm during the early 90s in the Persian Gulf, chimed in, saying the mission readiness rate for Russian jets was less than 70 percent, so hearing about these numbers is not surprising, according to the Iran Daily.
Russia has been attacking the positions of the Daesh terrorists and other terror groups in Syria upon a request by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's government since Sept. 30.
Russia's Colonel General Andrei Kartapolov says the Russian air force made 669 "combat sorties" hitting over 450 Daesh positions, up to Oct. 16.
