MOSCOW, August 04. /ITAR-TASS/. Russia begins on Monday five-day Air Force combat drills, which involve a total of over 100 fighter jets, bombers and helicopters in the country’s Central and Western military districts, a spokesman for the Russian Air Force said on Monday.

Colonel Igor Klimov said the large-scale exercises would be conducted jointly with the Russian air-defense forces.

“In all, the maneuvers will involve 100 planes and helicopters such as Su-27 Flanker fighter jets, MiG-31 Foxhound fighter jets, multipurpose Su-34 Fullback fighter-bombesr, Su-24 Fencer bombers as well as Mi-8, Mi-24 and Mi-28N combat helicopters,” Klimov said.

The combat aircraft will be practicing shooting at targets on land and in the air at new firing ranges as well as conducting launches of anti-aircraft missiles at the Ashuluk firing range in the southern Astrakhan region.

The first stage of the drills stipulates redeployment of combat aircraft from airfields of the Western Military District to the airfields of the Central Military District and during the second stage the aircraft would conduct mission flights from the southern airfield of Russia near Armavir, Krymsk, Mozdok, Morozovsk etc.