Belarusian saboteurs released footage of an incident in which a Russian A-50 early warning and control (AEW&C) plane was supposedly damaged on a Belarus airstrip by means of some sort of drone borne attack.

The footage is interesting as it shows a helicopter-style drone penetrating the Belarusian airport undeterred and landing a few times on the radar dome of the $300 million Russian military aircraft before flying away.

The party responsible for the attack, BYPOL, a group of former Belarusian security officers that oppose the current government, initially claimed the A-50 was significantly damaged. However, satellite imagery analyzed by various OSINT researchers suggested the plane was still mostly intact following the claimed operation, although snowfall covering the aircraft complicated the identification of visible damage.

BYPOL has given no specifics of the operation, which has left the door open for speculation. Possible explanations for what occurred: 1. The drone delivered an explosive payload and flew away before the device was successfully detonated resulting in damage to the aircraft. 2. The drone was supposed to explode but malfunctioned while on the target, and no damage was inflicted on the aircraft. Or: any number of other explanations. It's possible further evidence or different camera angles will be released to support the damaged aircraft claim, but as of now the evidence remains inconclusive.

About the Author

Will Killmore

Will Killmore is a US Army combat infantry veteran and Purple Heart recipient. He has deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan with the 172nd Stryker Brigade and 173rd Airborne Brigade. Following his time in service, he successfully pursued a certificate of journalism and has been a blogger for Funker530 since 2014. Follow Will’s bad takes on Twitter