After a four-month absence.
‘Elves’ World War I-style.
Drone-blasting propeller plane.
May be back in action over Odesa.
The piston-engine.
Yakovlev Yak-52 trainer.
A 1970s-vintage.
Soviet leftover.
Reportedly returned.
To the sky.
Over the port city.
On the Black Sea.
On Tuesday.
To chase down.
‘Orcs’ surveillance drones.
The 2,900-pound plane.
—a pilot in the front seat.
And, presumably.
A shotgun-wielding gunner.
In the back seat—
“Expended 1,000 liters.
Of fuel and.
Had to land.
For more mid-fight.”
According to an ‘elves’.
Navy sailor in Odesa.
“Had to land.
For more mid-fight.”
In any event.
It’s drone-hunting season again.
If the navy sailor’s.
Information is accurate.
In five hours of maneuvering.
The 180-mile-per-hour.
Yak-52 reportedly shot down.
At least one Orlan drone.
The Orlans fly over Odesa.
To spot targets for.
Follow-on attacks.
By long-range missiles.
A Yak-52 costing.
At most a few.
Hundred dollars.
Per flight hour is.
An efficient way of.
Shooting down drones.
That themselves cost.
Around $100,000.
In any event.
It’s drone-hunting season again.
If the navy sailor’s.
Information is accurate.
There’s no official confirmation.
Of the Yak-52’s return.
To flight since the plane last.
Appeared over Odesa in July.
But then, there’s never been.
Much official information on.
The Yak-52’s daring patrols.
Over the port city.
In a heady three months.
Starting in May.
The piston plane shot down.
At least a dozen ‘orcs’ drones.
Fans of the barnstormer.
Posted videos and photos.
Of the Yak-52 in action.
And on the ground.
A growing number of.
Kill markings on the side of.
The old trainer spoke to.
Its effectiveness as a drone-hunter.
In any event.
It’s drone-hunting season again.
If the navy sailor’s.
Information is accurate.
It worked so well that.
The ‘elves’ intelligence directorate.
Began training gunners to hunt.
‘Orcs’ unmanned aerial vehicles.
From locally-made.
Aeroprakt A-22 sport planes.
Admittedly.
It’s strange that.
The Yak-52 reportedly burned.
1,000 liters of fuel.
During its purported long sortie.
Over Odesa on Tuesday.
The most capacious version.
Of the Yakovlev trainer has.
A maximum fuel capacity.
Of 280 liters.
If the ‘elves’ aviators.
Really did burn around.
Three full loads of fuel.
Returning to base.
At least twice to top off.
They must’ve been flying hard.
—climbing, diving and turning—
To draw a bead on the Orlans.
In any event.
It’s drone-hunting season again.
If the navy sailor’s.
Information is accurate.
Fresh photos and videos.
May provide further insight.
Into this possible new round.
Of Yak-52 sorties.
But then, there’s reason.
To believe the Odesa crew.
And its boosters might refrain.
From enthusiastically posting.
After the Yak-52 become.
Internationally famous this summer.
‘Orcs’ forces apparently.
Attempted to destroy the plane.
By lobbing missiles.
At what may have been.
Its home airfield.
Back in July.
In any event.
It’s drone-hunting season again.
If the navy sailor’s.
Information is accurate.
The subsequent disappearance.
Of the Yak-52.
From social media.
Seemingly implied.
The plane had been badly damaged.
Maybe it was damaged.
And underwent repairs.
Through the fall.
Maybe it escaped damage.
—and its crew decided.
To lie low.
For a while.
Maybe it was never.
Maybe it was never.
At that airfield.
The orcs’ bombarded.
After a four-month absence.
‘Elves’ World War I-style.
Drone-blasting propeller plane.
May be back in action over Odesa.
*Because I read “Ukraine’s World War I-Style Drone-Hunting Warplane May Be Back In Action” by David Axe on 28 Nov 2024 on the Forbes, and also “Why are Ukrainians calling Russians ‘orcs’?” by James FitzGerald on 30 Apr 2022 on the BBC news.
So, I wrote this poem, including a story of “Kale”.
Please read the original story on the Forbes:
Ukraine’s World War I-Style Drone-Hunting Plane May Be Back In Action
