Pilots of the Russian Aerospace Forces (Aerospace Forces) fly from an airfield in the Syrian province of Al-Khaseke as part of escorting civilian convoys and joint Russian-Turkish patrols.
According to the head of the technical operational part of the flight, senior lieutenant Dmitry Gromov, each flight is carried out exclusively as part of a helicopter pair – a Mi-8AMTSh transport helicopter and an Mi-35 attack helicopter. The engineering and technical staff is engaged in maintaining equipment in constant combat readiness: they support the trouble-free and trouble-free operation of the complexes and systems of combat and transport helicopters.
“Today (February 2), the helicopter pair is tasked with providing air cover for a convoy of civilian vehicles along the M-4 highway from the settlement of Ain Issa to the settlement of Tell Tamr in the province of Al-Hasak. One helicopter flies at the head of the column, the second – from behind. The first is the Mi-8 with a fire support group on board, it needs to conduct reconnaissance ahead 5-10 km along the route so that there are no groupings on the route. From the rear, the convoy is covered by the Mi-35. Its main task is to prevent any equipment from getting attached to the column, ”Gromov said.
Helicopters carry out more than five flights daily. In addition to escorting convoys, Russian aviation equipment carries out reconnaissance in northeastern Syria and ensures the safety of joint Russian-Turkish patrols.
On March 5, 2020, the presidents of Russia and Turkey, Vladimir Putin and Recep Tayyip Erdogan, met in Moscow to discuss a settlement to the conflict in Syria. The negotiations lasted over six hours.
Following the talks, the parties managed to agree on measures to resolve the situation in Syria. As a result, the parties agreed to conduct joint patrols in the area of the Syrian-Turkish border in order to secure the movement of civilians. The patrolling became a guarantee of preventing the escalation of the situation in the region.