Russian Aircraft at al Assad Intl Airport_20September2015_AllSource Analysis

A new impressive photo unveils a large presence of Su-25 attack planes at airbase near Latakia.

A new impressive satellite image has just been released.

It shows at least 12 Su-25 Frogfoot attack planes lined-up on the secondary runway at al-Assad airbase near Latakia, the same airfield hosting the four Russian Air Force Su-30SM multirole combat planes.

It looks like the Frogfoots, the Russian aircraft most suitable for Air Interdiction and potential Close Air Support missions against ISIS have eventually arrived in Syria.

They will operate alongside the Su-24 Fencer jets spotted trailing an Il-78/76 plane over Homs on Sept. 20 (not visible in the latest satellite snapshots).

According to the most recent reports, as many as 28 Russian planes have already been deployed to Syria. The question is: where are those not exposed by satellite imagery yet.

This is not the first time the Su-25 is deployed in the region to fight IS militants: on Jul. 1, 2014 seven Frogfoot attack planes operated by the Pasdaran (informal name of the IRGC – the Army of the Guardians of the Islamic Revolution) deployed to Imam Ali Airbase, in Iraq, to join the ex-Russian Air Force Su-25s already delivered to Iraq in the air war against ISIS (Al Qaeda-linked Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant).

Image credit: AllSource Analysis | GeoNorth | Airbus