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Military drills

Fighter jets, bombers hammer enemy forces to defend Crimean coast in drills

According to the data of the Southern Military District, the drills in Crimea have brought together about 4,000 personnel and up to 200 items of armament and military hardware

Su-30SM fighters Vadim Savitsky/Russian Defence Ministry's Press Service/TASS

Su-30SM fighters

© Vadim Savitsky/Russian Defence Ministry's Press Service/TASS

ROSTOV-ON-DON, October 18. /TASS/. Over 20 military aircraft delivered missile and bomb strikes against a notional enemy’s assault force to prevent its landing onto the Crimean coast in drills, the press office of Russia’s Southern Military District reported on Monday.

"Su-30SM fighters and Su-24M and Su-34 bombers conducted sorties to the target area at low and ultra-low altitudes operating outside the zone of visibility for radars and surface-to-air missile systems of the notional enemy’s warships. The Su-30SM fighters conducted launches of Kh-31A anti-ship missiles from a maximum distance while the bombers delivered strikes with high-explosive fragmentation bombs from an altitude of up to 600 meters," the press office said in a statement.

As the press office specified to TASS, this episode of the drills involved more than 20 warplanes.

According to the data of the Southern Military District, the drills in Crimea have brought together about 4,000 personnel and up to 200 items of armament and military hardware.

The massive command and staff drills kicked off at practice ranges in the Southern Military District on October 13. The maneuvers will also involve units of the Southern Military District’s military bases stationed in Abkhazia, Armenia and South Ossetia, and also forces of the Black Sea Fleet and the Caspian Flotilla that will practice assignments in the Black and Caspian Seas.

Overall, the command of the Southern Military District is set to engage about 8,000 personnel and up to 350 items of armament and military hardware from the combined-arms, air force and air defense armies and its other units and formations.

The maneuvers will inspect the troop preparedness in the south-western strategic area.

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