The clash between the aviation of the Libyan army of Khalifa Haftar and the Turkish troops took place in the skies of Libya. According to the Bulgarian Military, the Libyan Air Force’s MiG-29 fighters, presumably delivered from Russia, came under fire from the Turkish army’s air defense systems in the sky over the city of Sirte. The publication refers to information from the Pentagon, according to which the fighters were delivered to Libya from Russia. According to a number of media outlets, as a result of the collision, Turkish anti-aircraft guns were destroyed.
Fighting with the use of aviation unfolded in Libya near the city of Sirte. In the vicinity of the city, there is a front line between the Turkish-backed forces of the Libyan government and the troops of the rebellious Marshal Hanifa Haftar. In this area, for some time, two MiG-29 fighters were repeatedly spotted patrolling the airspace in the front line area.
As noted by the online edition Bulgarian Military and a number of other online media, during one of the sorties, a battle took place between Haftar’s aviation and air defense systems deployed in the vicinity of Sirte, delivered from Turkey. According to one of the media versions, the fighters came under fire from Turkish short-range air defense systems but were able to evade anti-aircraft missiles.
Subsequently, Libyan artillery fire was opened on the identified air defense positions, the installations were destroyed. According to another version, the fighters were not noticed in time by air defense systems. This allowed the fighters to strike at the positions of the Turkish troops and destroy several anti-aircraft installations.
The media note that there is no information yet about which complexes were destroyed. Earlier in Libya, MIM-23 Hawk anti-aircraft missile systems and Korkut self-propelled anti-aircraft complexes were seen delivered from Turkey.
As the official representative of the US Army Command in Africa (AFRICOM) said earlier, a batch of military aircraft was delivered to Libya from Russia. According to photos published by the Pentagon, the Libyan troops of Marshal Haftar received MiG-29 fighters and Su-24 frontline bombers.
According to experts, the aircraft of these models were supplied to a number of countries of the former Warsaw Pact, therefore, they could be purchased by Haftar’s troops on the black market for weapons.
In addition, the MiG-29 fighters are used by the armed forces of Egypt, whose government actively supports Haftar and opposes the presence of Turkish troops in Libya. According to experts, the Egyptian Air Force uses fighters of the MiG-29M / M2 modification, which can be used to strike at ground targets.
