Apparently, the Belarusian military decided not to bother much this time.
On May 7, it became known that a “sudden inspection of carriers of non-strategic nuclear weapons” is being conducted in the Belarusian Armed Forces. As part of the inspection, “part of the aviation forces and means were relocated to a reserve airfield.”
As we reported earlier, on May 7, two Su-25 aircraft flew from Lida airfield to Machulishchy airfield. On May 8, the aircraft performed training flights and returned to Lida in the evening of the same day (at around 16:00 Minsk time).
The squadron of Su-25 attack aircraft of the 116th Assault Air Base was officially involved in the inspection. The squadron usually consists of 12 aircraft.
It’s notable that to “relocate part of the aviation forces and means,” the military chose Machulishchy airfield, where the 50th Combined Air Base of the Belarusian Air Force is located. Therefore, there’re all conditions at the airfield to ensure the flights of attack aircraft. If the relocation were to take place at reserve airfields (Babruisk, Luninets, Barautsy) or civilian airports, it would require the transfer of personnel and equipment.
For example, on March 27, 2024, the 116th Assault Air Base performed a dispersal of aircraft to Babruisk reserve airfield. Together with Su-25 attack aircraft, engineering personnel and ground support equipment were delivered to the reserve airfield by military transport aircraft.
Apparently, the Belarusian military decided not to bother much this time. And to avoid unnecessary movements, a couple of Su-25 flew to the ‘prepared’ airfield, where they created a background for the Chief of the General Staff of the Belarusian Armed Forces to record a video. And in 24 hours, they returned to the base airfield.
