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- In total, the Sukhoi Su-25 amassed a total of 60,000 sorties throughout its service in Afghanistan until the Soviet withdrawal in February 1989. The first combat Su-25 unit to be formed was the 200th Independent Attack Squadron (OShAE) based out of Sital-Chai in Soviet Azerbaijan. The first aircraft from the unit arrived in Afghanistan in May 1980 with the full unit deploying in June to Shindand airfield in the western part of the country. The deployment was called Operation Exam and involved a team of engineers and technicians who would oversee the aircraft and evaluate its performance. The first Su-25 combat missions began on 25 July with the 200th OShAE flying counterinsurgency sorties and close air support in support of the 5th Motorized Rifle Division. By 1982, the Su-25's area of responsibility expanded and the aircraft began flying missions sometimes as far as Kabul with pilots flying on average 4–5, sometimes as many as 8, sorties a day. The aircraft typically flew with external fuel tanks to increase its range but was barred from flying in poor weather conditions or nighttime due to faulty navigational equipment. By the time the squadron left Afghanistan in October 1982, its Su-25s had logged more than 2,000 sorties with no losses, however some had sustained damage due to ground fire. The deployment allowed engineers to make several modifications to the aircraft's weapons systems, replacing them with ones more suited for mountain operations and installing increased countermeasures and defensive systems. The introduction of the Su-25 in Afghanistan led to a vastly expanded scope of operations by Soviet ground commanders who could now insert their troops deeper into guerrilla territory with better air cover. The Mujahideen grew to fear and respect the Su-25 as the war grew on, adapting their tactics around the assumption of its use. Su-25s were used as development platforms for Soviet precision guided munitions, being some of the first Soviet aircraft to use such munitions in combat, typically against cave entrances or weapons storage sites. In April 1986, the Su-25 used a precision-guided weapon in combat for the first time, firing a Kh-25 and Kh-29 missile against enemy targets. The introduction of precision bombs and missiles allowed the Su-25 to begin flying missions at higher-altitude, reducing the risk posed by anti-aircraft artillery and shoulder launched surface-to-air missiles. Due to the fact Su-25s were often tasked with flying low-altitude, subsonic, close air support missions in support of ground forces in combat, they made frequent targets for Mujahideen anti-aircraft fire and surface-to-air missiles. Some 23 aircraft were shot down over the course of the war, with an additional dozen or so were lost in non-combat related incidents, while another dozen were written off due to extensive damage, and a further nine were destroyed by bombardments on the ground in Kabul and Kandahar. In all, Su-25s represented a quarter of Soviet Air Force (VVS) fixed-wing losses in the campaign. On 16 January 1984, a Su-25 piloted by a Soviet lieutenant colonel was struck by a 9K32 Strela-2 missile and downed near Urgun, Afghanistan, making it the first shootdown of a Su-25 in the war. In August 1988, a Su-25 piloted by Colonel Alexander Rutskoy was hit by anti-aircraft fire and crashed. Rutskoy ejected but landed on Pakistani soil where he was captured and later repatriated to the Soviets. Some sources state he was shot down by Pakistani warplanes. The aircraft's wreckage was reportedly salvaged by Pakistan and handed over to the United States. In October of that year, a Su-25 sustained a powerful hit at high-altitude north of Gardez, heavily damaging it but remaining flyable. The strike was reportedly the result of a missile fired by a Pakistani fighter jet. In January 1989, a missile hit a Su-25 near Kabul killing the pilot in the last combat loss of the aircraft in Afghanistan. (en)
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