Re: [GZG] [Real World] Russian Mig 29 shoots down Georgian UAV

[Тимофей Потапенко <potapenkoteo@xxxxxxx>]

I think, I can answer about those two questins
1/ Nationality of the fighter. You can dafinitely notice two vertical stabilisers. So, there are only very several types of planes of that kind there: American F-15 or F-14, as far as I know no one posess that planes in that region; Russian (or ex-Soviet) MiG-25, MiG-29, MiG-31, Su-27, Su-30, Su-34, Su-35. Su-30-35 are VERY rare planes, and MiG-31 exists in a very small numbers, so that is definitely not one of them. MiG-29 or Su-27 can be seen there, and there are surely no those planes in the airforce of Georgia or Abhasia, you can see only Russian "29th" or "27th" there. As to MiG-25 -- it's relatively old interceptor, which was also almost as expensive as F-15, so it wasn't wide-spred in Soviet AA-force, but there were squadrons of them, based in Caucasus, and some of them could be in Gerorgia. That's another questions, that Georgians in 1990s didn't have any good fighter engineers and repairing facilities, so they can hardly make any of MiG-25 fly. So, for me, it was no doubt, Russian plane.

2/ Whose airspace was it.
The answer is: Abhasian. Georgians claim Abhasia as there (Georgian) territory. Abhasians don't think so, they want independance, and they almost have it: there are no Georgian army, Georgian police, or Georgian law on there territory. Now Georgians are trying to take the land back by armed hand, Abhasians are preparing for defencive war, but Russians don't want to have any wars next to there border, so, they do what they can to stop Georgian military preparations by any means (let's say shooting down Georgian recon-planes over Abhasia). What is also important -- many Abhasians in Abhasia are citizens of Russia, and need protection in case of Georgian invasion; Abhasia is very friendly towards Russia, while Georgia is hostile; after Kosovo get its independance from Serbia (in complenely the same circumstances) Russian government consider more or less possible for them to recognise independent Abhasia and Southern Osetia (by the way if there were a referenda in S Osetia, they would choose to reunite with Northern Osetia, which is a part of Russia, rather than being an independant "banana republic").      

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