The image of a Ukrainian Air Force (UAF) Su-24MR (NATO: Fencer) supersonic, “swing-wing” tactical bomber carrying an Anglo-French Storm Shadow / SCALP EG missile complete with a message for the intended recipients of the weapon: “From Kyiv and the Kyiv region for the ‘expletives,’” seems to confirm what many military commentators have suspected for some time – Ukraine has engineered a way for the decades old Soviet-era tactical bomber to use the weapon to deliver precision strikes on Russian targets.
In May 2023, the then-Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov used X to announce the first deliveries of the Storm Shadows from the UK. Included in the post was a photo of a Su-24, apparently carrying one of the missiles, containing a message from the UK’s Secretary for Defence, Ben Wallace saying:
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“For all the brave ‘few’ who risk all for the glory of Ukraine.”
Cleaned up copy of the Ben Wallace congratulatory message on arrival of Storm Shadow in May 2023. Photo by: Polymarket Intel on X
Monday’s image shows the bomber on the tarmac in front of a hardened aircraft shelter designed to provide protection from Russian strikes, underscoring the value of the aircraft and its payload to Ukraine.
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While the location has not been confirmed, several commentators have suggested it is the Starokostiantyniv airbase, located in Western Ukraine’s Khmelnytsky region, home to the 7th Tactical Aviation Brigade.
The site has been attacked several times by Russian missiles and drones – the latest being part of a mass drone attack on July 5 – however, this image suggests that, at least in this case, the hangars along with Ukrainian air defenses did their job.
The Su-24MR was originally intended as a reconnaissance aircraft when it entered service with the Soviet Air Force in 1974. The aircraft’s distinctive variable-sweep wing design allows it to adjust its aerodynamic profile for different speeds and altitudes. The aircraft is not usually fitted with an attack radar, which, unless one has been retrofitted, means the aircraft would rely on pre-programmed target coordinates being fed into the Storm Shadows before takeoff and would preclude any in-flight alterations to the mission profile.
The low-observable Storm Shadow / SCALP missile has a range in excess of 250 kilometers (155 miles) and uses its combined satellite guided and inertial precision-guided system to deliver its BROACH (Bomb Royal Ordnance Augmented Charge) multi-stage “bunker busting” warhead against protected facilities such as Russian command centers and headquarters – such as the September 2023 strike on Russia’s Black Sea Fleet headquarters in Crimea.
Ukraine’s Su-24MR launches the missiles from repurposed pylons recovered from the UK’s Tornado GR4 multi-role combat aircraft. The number 5 on the pylon in Monday’s image has led to speculation that this particular aircraft has carried out five successful missions – based on the historical practice of military pilots recording their mission tallies on their aircraft.
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