Fresh footage reveals Azerbaijan's tactic behind AN-2 deploymentOctober 8, 2021 - 18:53 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Azerbaijan's Ministry of Defense, together with the country's State Border Service, has published a video, which shows two pilots jumping out of a Soviet-era AN-2 aircraft during the 44-day war in Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh). The detail was first spotted by Telegram channels. Media reports during the war alleged that Azeri forces converted old AN-2s into drones, flying them over the conflict zone as apparent surface to air missile bait. Footage released during the hostilities shows the aircraft flying low and slow․ The fresh footage from Azerbaijan and media reports from Turkey reveal now that pilots lifted the plane, put it on the right course and dropped from the aircraft by parachute. How many of these An-2 planes, commonly called the Kukuruznik (Russian for corn crop duster) have been deployed operationally and how many may have been shot down is unclear. However, the Intel Lab reported during the war that on August 28, 2020, 61 aircraft could be counted on the ground in satellite images, whereas on October 3, 2020 only 26 aircraft could be spotted.
Top stories Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev arrived in Moscow on April 22 to hold talks with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". Partner news | International cybercrime ringleaders arrested in Armenia, Ukraine Europol, Europe's crime agency, has arrested four ringleaders of several cybercrime networks that used botnets. Armenia skips CSTO Defense Ministers meeting A meeting of the Council of Defense Ministers of the Collective Security Treaty Organization countries began in Almaty. Armenian, Iranian foreigh policy chief talk over the phone The Foreign Minister of Armenia once again expressed condolences to his counterpart on the death of the President of Iran. Armenia, U.S. customs authorities to boost assistance with new deal The government has approved an agreement with the U.S. government on mutual assistance between the customs authorities. |