The Super Fighter That Ended Up Battling Itself
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- Опубліковано 18 січ 2025
- In the contested skies over Ukraine in 2024, a Soviet-era Sukhoi Su-25 streaks across the sky, its familiar silhouette unchanged since the days of the Cold War.
But as it approaches its target, something is different, as the pilot releases not Russian-made munitions but a NATO-approved French Hammer-guided bomb.
Born in the 1970s as the USSR's answer to the American A-10 Warthog, the Sukhoi Su-25 was built to survive intense ground fire during close support missions. Its twin R-95Sh engines, each producing 9,900 pounds of thrust, push it to speeds over 600 miles per hour. With thick armor plating shielding the cockpit and a powerful twin-barrel autocannon that can fire 3,000 rounds per minute, the model has proven its worth in dozens of conflicts around the world.
From Soviet factories to desert battlefields and now carrying Western-made weapons over Eastern Europe, the Su-25 has evolved far beyond its creators' expectations.
Today, in Ukraine's contested airspace, this modern-day "Flying Tank" continues to adapt. As these battle-hardened aircraft crisscross the skies, they fly for both sides of the conflict. The same robust airframe that once symbolized the Soviet might now embodies the complexities of 21st-century warfare, serving in ways its designers never envisioned.
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Su-25: NOT a fighter, it's CAS (Close Air Support)
He knows.
@@Gadzonka-s9t ☺️
Technically it's called an Attacker.
CAS, Attack Aircraft, Attacker you will find them all across publications. Fighter although not.
especially not a "superfighter"...
Can the Frogfoot really be called a fighter?
It's a "strike fighter" so I guess. Kinda like calling the A-10 a fighter. Technically sure, but not really
No
No.
I'd say it's an attack aircraft, maybe even a light bomber?
If I was on the ground and it arrived to Help, I'd call it brother! Never mind just a fighter of low altitude prestation.
Thank you for turning the music down. I was worried I'd have to stop watching your content due to obscene musical levels. I enjoy your stuff, thanks for making it.
I've already stopped listening to it because of the 'fake dramatic' voiceovers. I am only here because I misread the author when I clicked on it. I got 7 seconds in...
Y’all are soft AF.
Almost half of the comments are so concerned about the qualities. Yes, they may not be good, but honestly, no one is perfect. Smh. Learn how to shake things off....
The SU-25 looks to have been based more on the Northrop YA-9 than the Fairchild A-10.
Multiple "Frogfoots".... uh, would that be "Frogfeet"? 😅
I think people compete it to thunderbolt because they're both flying tanks that excel in CAS roles
*compare
I don't think it's based on it at all. I think it's just their equivalent
@@tylerromero Maybe not "based on", but certainly looks enfluenced by the YA-9. Very similar airframe design. Same weak points regarding engine placement.
@@lancerevell5979 I meant a-10, but yeah I could see that. However i do wonder how much exposure to western designs Soviet bureau's had
Makes an Awesome PSS scale slope RC plane. Looks great!
I haven't been subscribed to your channel for that long but these are amazing videos. Well narrated, with a great selection of footage and stills.
10:23 the F-15C featured here, 85-0095, is currently being demilitarized and scrapped for parts 😢
*Sukhois use 30mm canons those shells are basically grenades, but here they seem to be doing damage like pistol rounds*
The Su-25 is one of my favourite Soviet aircraft. It looks like it means business.
The SU-25 is as much a fighter as the Warthog lol.
For those of you picky enough to go for the "the SU-25 is not a fighter blah blah blah"....ummmm so what, the content of the video far outweighs your petty messages!!!
As always, great video and content as expected from the Dark channels, thanks for your work and all the effort put in!!!
Cheers from Sydney Aus!!!! 🍻🍻🍻🍻
Interesting video but you don't say much about the losses of the ukrainian air force since february 2022. There is not much operationnal Su 25 left in the ukrainian army.
He invented 350 Russian planes lost... about 10x more than the Kiev propaganda declared. So imagine the side he's on.
Or much of a Ukranian airforce left
@@cristitanase6130every source would be from the Ukrainians tho 😭. The Russians are notorious for diminishing their actual losses. That 105 number floating around is just those that are visually documented thru video and pictures. Don’t have to take sides when all the information available is one sided dude.
Great video
amazing video, well done Dark Skies
Another awesome video Dark Skies!!! Great work!
Надо заметить, что Су-25 не подходит для использования планирующих бомб, так как его потолок составляет всего 7000 м. Это обстоятельство серьезно ограничивает дальность сброса. Что в свою очередь увеличивает потери, потому что приходится подлетать ближе к зоне боевых действий. Все это привело к тому, что в данный момент у Украины осталось около 10 боеспособных Су-25.
The Afghan’s said it ( the frog foot ) had to be German because the Russians could not come up with something that good 😂 .
The United States Air Force had the help of some of those German pilots who actually worked with the Stuka dive bombers to be able to perfect characteristics in handling for the A-10 warthog. Irony ea?
Has served very well.
I have a model of the SU25 and i looked at the underside and yeah i found those twin cannons. I just found it after watching the vid. I have this model for a few months now and i find different things on the model as time goes on 😅
How could it surpass the creator's expectations? All they hope for is to not be send to the gulag. If they're not there, the design is successful.
Maybe they expected to be sent to the gulag for it?
Gulags happened 30 years prior for hell sake.
@cristitanase6130was just saying it like he’s off by 30 years 😂
Actually one of my favorite Soviet aircraft.
Macedonia does Greece has those ?
Macedonia had them in 2001
The Harrier Jump Jet should have been fitted with Cannon & Armoured as a Ground Strike Fighter that would have been Lit
after it will not be airworthy, the heavy armor can t permit harriers to fly.....
@@pappagone6066 Yes you are probably correct - the vertical take off wouldn't function with the added weight & it is already an out dated aircraft - they were pretty cool back in the day though 👍
@@purebloodheretic4682 you understood pretty well my little english
It was extremely important to keep down the weight of the production model av8b harriers. It's one of the reasons why they took the coffee machine out.
Why do some pictures show a two seater aircraft?
The Russia Ukraine war just makes me sad. So much death and destruction for no reason. The soldiers, airmen and sailors of both sides never deserved to die for such bullshit.
Why didn't Australia and UK purchase A10s?
No reason to. Both the UK and Australia don’t have the numbers to justify buying a jet at 20 million USD when their aircraft are just as capable dropping bombs or AGMs. With seeing how SU-25s perform in a contested airspace, the A-10 would not have performed well in a similar situation
because same as f22s, US are not selling them.
It it a modified copy of the Northrop A-9.
The Su-25 is the only aircraft that has the distinction of bombing the factory where it was build.
and completely destroying it, yes
@@cristitanase6130 There's not a lot of info, but apparently they have been rebuilding and modernizing Su-25s and building other items.
@@mathiasbartl9393 Russia did that. Russia's air factories took over the modernization projects for all planes, including Su25.
Small reminder, Sukhoi Design Bureau is Russian, and all its planes are patented and owned by it, Su25 included.
Georgia just built the plane as part of the Soviet Union, and later it was given the license to continue producing under license.
Since 2013 they are only allowed to service and repair existing planes.
I really see the A 9 in this design. Gee, I wonder where the Soviets found the looks for their Frogfoot???
If you go to March Air Reserve Base Museum you will find one of the few surviving prototypes of the A9 sitting out there. It has a great many characteristics of the frogfoot, it just looks bigger when you're standing next to the thing.
Everyone praises every single plane, tank, ship, submarines, cars, trucks, bicycles, trucks, helicopters, boats. Anything that does military and civilian transportation or any other whatever anyone can execute or operate or take immediate action till evidence of shot down or poorly manufactured or a malfunction of something’s. Same goes for other things that everyone travels on or in.
I will always remember the words of a drill sergeant when I join the Army in 1977 in regards to your comment. He said if you want to guarantee, buy a toaster! The guy was funny as hell.
Thank You, & Well Done!
Wouldn't the plural of frogfoot be frogfeet?
More of a light bomber than a fighter
Fighter? Do you know what a fighter is?
He’s a lover not a fighter
Gun pods too?
it can carry 4 23mm gunpods
Greece doesn't have those planes I think 🤔 Haven't seen them and I live in Macedonia
Did Macedonia have an enemy that used such aircraft against you? What he said doesn't necessarily mean the countries mentioned used them. Their adversaries likey did.
@@WilliamMurphy-b6v no
@NancyDLaw Thanks for responding. I don't know what the narrator meant by incuding Macedonia in the list.
@@WilliamMurphy-b6v he might mean North Macedonia the country Greece allowed to take up th name Macedonia
@NancyDLaw Would they have their own air force or military connections to Russia or some country that was connected to the old USSR, like the satellite countries the USSR controlled after World War 2. The military forces of most of those countries had Soviet-style military equipment.
Ukrainian su 25s have also been shot down at an alarming rate .
they are less than 20 to 30% of the original numbers
please make your videos balanced
Proxy war.
This video is a bit misleading. Remind me how many SU 25s does Ukraine have less than 5 lol.
They had more though
It’s like 20 but before the war they had 48 so more than 50% of them were destroyed
THE USA needs to get one " FOR RESEARCH PURPOSES OFC"!!
What makes you think they don't have some?
Got many a long time ago. The Military Industrial complex did not like that these were 100x less expensive than F35 so they scrapped them.
@@cristitanase6130 i figured that they could help out the A-10
@@MH5XXXX For what? A10 is already out of production.
What do you mean by saying the Russian upgrades are closely guarded? We have all seen them here on UA-cam. They are nothing more than Garmin's and iPhones duck taped to the dashes of the aircraft
now you give them your drones
14:04 "Russian air losses"... while it is the recording when the trigger happy CIA-AZOV unit shot down one of the few ukrainian MI-24s, with their best pilot. Not smart... but that is typical CIA-ukrainian "professionalism".
The A-10s were grounded due to mechanical failures of the airframes. If the US is planning to sell these aircraft JUNKS to anyone, then they are just interested in making money, not to make their pilots (or planes) survive. Just like in the case of other outdated equipment and munitions that were sold to ukraine at multiple price of the brand new ones.
He invented 350 planes lost... Ghost of Kiev propaganda numbers!
This is an aircraft that can benefit _hugely_ from Suppression of Enemy Air Defense. I would like to hear how the F-16 is doing with the SEAD mission and does Ukraine still have any HARM missiles left
F16 was destroyed on the ground, it cannot do any SEAD mission as it's a slow moving huge target against extremely long range and accurate air defense systems
@@cristitanase6130
Right and next you're going to tell us that 10 have been destroyed. No one trusts Putin bots.
@@cristitanase6130
The HARM missile eliminates your "long-range and accurate anti-aircraft systems" like clubbing baby seals.
And now the F-16 has added functionality with that missile. So y'all baby seals are in for a knocking.
@@mowgli2071 HARM range is medium and the missile itself can be intercepted (as it was already proven) by almost all medium range AAA systems.
Not to mention that the moment the plane comes close to the long range radars it will be intercepted by high altitude Mig25 patrols.
We're talking hundreds of km of interdiction space.
The only successful destructions of Russian AAA systems were by long range missile and rocket strikes on static batteries.
This worked for a while before STAVKA cracked down on incompetence and laziness of Crimean air defense commanders and forced them to move their batteries daily to mess up with NATO's satellite recon.
Together with deployment of mobile medium range cruise missile and HIMARS interceptors the rate of success drastically decreased.
Now the successful hits are almost an exception.
@@mowgli2071 And btw, Russia is now slowly integrating its stealth planes into airspace interdiction patrols, as we already witness with the drone that was destroyed way over the frontline without a single NATO system being able to detect the Felon or its rogue drone.
Good luck doing F16 SEAD missions under stealth superiority fighters.
There's one sitting at Goma International Airport...it can fly but it has 100s of shrapnel holes
YEP I WANT ONE
Where is the so called game Changer.... Tide Turner f16s that the comedian been bragging from the beginning of the war....
He said he needs f16 to win the war.... So they gave him.... Now what....
His Christmas list just doesn't end....
Yeah, this guy is a propagandist. He invents shit and presents it as facts.
There’s no such thing as a game changer in war. Everything gets destroyed.
Not a fighter,its a ground attack aircraft,as usual the commentators have the wrong script
Looking as russian as any plane could.
An SU-25 is not a fighter! And it's hardly super!
When we say Russia loss 10% of it's airforce they also added many aircrafts including 30 ka52, su57 fleet reached 22+, mi28nm variant, su35 also added but when you see Ukraine they lost almost all it's airforce
L39 albatross: 19 destroyed
Mig 29: 45(6 damaged)
Su24: 24(1 damaged)
Su25: 25(2 damaged)
Su27: 26(12 damaged)
Mig21: 4(2 damaged)
Almost all it's cargo fleet of antonov an12, an22, an26, an72, an74, an124, an132, an140, an148, il76 total 22 aircrafts
42 mi8 helicopter destroyed
Mi24 attack helicopter: 16(2 captured, 3 damaged)
Bayraktar tb2: 28 destroyed
Now, the damaged ones can be salvaged for parts or repaired but for countries that have proper aviation industries. Ukraine has none like US, Russia, European nations. And these all are confirmed losses with satellite imagery. Ukraine lost 294 aircrafts including surveillance drones and Russia lost 229 aircrafts and drones. Not including fpv and Kamikaze drones because they're intended to be destroyed
Now 1 f16 is also destroyed and recently 7 kinzhals targeted Ukrainian f16 base so till now no confirmation of any destruction but Russia 5 more destroyed
exactly
i like a balanced report
the ukranians have lost its entire air force
else why would they be begging for f-16s and eyc etc
If you uploaded your voice into AI, I wonder if we could tell.....
he uses AI as it's a clickbait fake channel
😊😊😊😊
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Russian version of the Jag
More like the YA-9, the aircraft that lost a competition to the A-10…😂
I predict US A 10's (Wart Hog's) will live as long as B 59's (BUFF's) and be flown multi generational like the "BUFF"
As a kid dove hunting the Imerial Valley N/E of Salton Sea about 1984, I Got to Hear the RRRRRRRRrrr of their cannons gunnery training.
I will "Never Forget" that sound!
I also camped, fished and hunted as a kid near March AFB a S.A.C. base watching Chrome Doom and others going on.
B-52 you mean.
@@michaelnaven213 typo on a Dvorak keyboard?
Why can't the US Army be handed dowe some A-10s (isn't Ground Attack their forté)?
@@KOZMOuvBORG because the af does not want the army to have anything fixed wing........they think the army is crapping their rice bowl.
but off-shore the af DOES have the best digs and the best chow.
Complimentary algorithm enhancement comment!😊
More clickbait...this is neither super nor fighter.
STFU and quit your whining.
I LOVE THIS CHANNEL. THANK YOU FOR STILL UPLOADING VIDEOS ON UA-cam. I LOVE ALL THE OTHER CHANNELS. YOU GUYS HAVE KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK. YOU CAN’T MAKE EVERYONE HAPPY, BUT I’M HAPPY AS FUCK. 🤷🏻♂️😂😂😂😂😉👍
SLAVA UKRAINI!!!!!!!
The A 10 warthog get it correct dude!
Dear Wally,
I recall seeing the A10 having the title Thunderbolt many years ago. At the time I think it was being regarded as a reincarnation of the P47, which also specialised in mud moving.
Frank.
Warthog is not the official name.
@@Charles-k9g5y
Dear Charles,
Is the official name Thunderbolt?
Frank.
Give me A10 any day awesome plane
Azeri Su-25 are equipped with turkish cruise missile "SOM" which has 250-300 km range 😊
Su 25 is not even a fighter
The A10 hasn’t been tested in combat like the frogfoot.
What?
@@michaelnaven213 -- not in near peer combat
@@Charles-k9g5ynear peer? What peer??
Near peer?? What peer??? If yt doesn't censor me
@@garykarr3948 -- the A10 has not come up against a country like Russia yet. That would be a near peer conflict. So far it’s only come up against farmers.
🇺🇦 We are winning
😂
the cup of grandparent
Sadly, neither nation is winning.
The Globalist that are laundering the US Tax Dollars are winning.
yeah, the most graveyards per capita contest
aren't you tired of pretending?
Yes its awsome🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉
This airplane has proven nothing other than the fact that it’s entirely obsolete on the modern battlefield.
nothing russian is a super anything
Nato designated it a fighter because all "fast" jets were fighters. Even the Su-24 is a "fighter" to nato.. which is why it's the Fencer.
Yawn. Northrup A-9.
This channel does interesting videos, but very inaccurate, they do very little research. They love Russian, I’m pretty sure it Russian propaganda videos. Dont need to be accurate.
A bad copy of the Northrop YA9
Terrible…Soviet Union couldn’t even steal and copy correctly.
This channel is pure western propaganda
Womb womb, cry u little ussr fanboy
Russia’s war in Ukraine? How about NATO’s war in Ukraine?
🙄
If NATO was at war in Ukraine, the war would’ve been over in a matter of days and Russia wouldn’t have a military anymore…😂
@@teddy.d174 Yeah, because Russia would have evaporate EU and US in the first hour.
So much bs out of these propagandists mouth thinking NATO actually stands a chance against 15.000 nuclear warheads.
6say sure Teddy. I mean look how you won in Iraq and Afghanistan!
Well, its Russia who invaded Ukraine, not nato. So yeah, Russias war in Ukraine is correct.
First
Wow you must be so proud
And ???
and still a looser.
Hilarious that the Su-25 is based on the losing YA-9, the aircraft that lost to the A-10 Warthog…😂
😂😅 *edited as per duh and derp | meh via max rafael waller* 😂😅 - 10:17 am Pacific DayLight Savings Time on Thursday, 3 October 2024 leap year 😂😅 edited via duh as per derp 😂😅
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