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BOMBS AWAY
Russian bombers launch missiles at ISIS command posts and arms depots in Syria
A squadron of Tu-95MS missile-carrying bombers targeted the cities of Idlib and Homs
THE Russian air force has released dramatic footage of its latest bombing raids on ISIS strongholds in Syria.
A squadron of Tu-95MS missile-carrying bombers took off from the Engels airfield - east of Moscow - and launched cruise missiles against targets on the outskirts of the battlefront cities of Idlib and Homs.
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The attack mission also involved Su-33 carrier fighters from the Admiral Kuznetsov aircraft carrier - currently located off the Syrian coast.
According to the Russian Defense Ministry, the air strikes were carried out against ISIS command posts, weapons-making facilities, arms and ammunition depots.
“The coordinates of all the targets were checked and verified via several intelligence channels,” said the ministry’s official spokesman Major-General Igor Konashenkov.
In the end, the Tu-95MS aircraft covered a distance of 11,000 kilometers (6,800 miles) with two mid-air refuellings.
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According expert Pavel Bulat, the decision to more than double the length of the route was deliberate.
“The Aerospace Forces are practicing the capabilities of strategic aviation in the event of a complete closure of airspace. One needs to make sure that one’s pilots can get anyone anywhere,” he said.
He added the latest combat sortie had the task of carrying out a simultaneous strike against all the detected militant targets.
“It is for tasks like these that strategic aviation is used. There is a military term for it – a massive aerial attack,” he said.
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"This causes disorganisation in the enemy ranks and gives a considerable advantage to ground troops."
The Tu-95MS is one of Russia’s main strategic bombers capable of firing the newest Kh-101 cruise missiles.
“It is a subsonic cruise missile with a range of up to 5,000 kilometers [3,100 miles]. It can be launched from an altitude of up to 10,000 kilometers. Its warhead weighs some 400 kilograms [900 lbs],” a defence industry source told .
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