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Russia’s air force has grown more capable during the Ukraine war, airpower experts say.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n
They argue it now poses a greater threat to NATO than before the war.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n
Pilots are more experienced, losses are being replaced, and systems have been improved.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Russian airpower has become<\/a> far more dangerous and poses a greater threat to the NATO alliance than it did before the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, air combat experts warn.<\/p>\n Russia’s war in Ukraine<\/a> has provided its pilots with combat experience and lessons in modern warfare. Russia has also upgraded systems and weaponry and has been producing more aircraft than it has lost, boosting its overall end strength.<\/p>\n Justin Bronk, an airpower expert at the UK’s Royal United Services Institute think tank, asserted in a recent report that Russian airpower “represents a greater threat to Western air power<\/a> capabilities in Europe than it did prior to the invasion of Ukraine.”<\/p>\n NATO needs to ensure it has upgraded its view of Russia’s air force, retired US Army Maj. Gen. Gordon “Skip” Davis, who served as NATO’s deputy assistant secretary-general for its defense-investment division, told Business Insider. “NATO can’t be complacent with what it thought Russia once was as an air power versus what it is now.”<\/p>\n He said “Russia is more dangerous<\/a> now to NATO than it was before the war because of lessons learned.”<\/p>\n Bronk said Russia’s performance in Ukraine \u2014 including its early failure to achieve air superiority<\/a> and its significant aircraft losses \u2014 has led many NATO policymakers and military observers to downgrade the threat posed by its air force, the VKS.<\/p>\n But that’s a mistake, he said, because, “in many respects, the VKS of 2025 is a significantly more capable potential threat for Western air forces than it was in 2022.”<\/p>\nRussia’s fleet has grown<\/h2>\n