Why has Russia’s superior air force failed to conquer Ukraine’s skies?

Justin Bronk, a researcher in air power at the London-based Royal United Services Institute think tank (RUSI), was also puzzled by what he described as “the mysterious case of the missing Russian air force”. Following Russia’s “initial stand-off strikes” on Ukrainian targets, Bronk wrote, the “logical and widely anticipated next step, as seen in almost every military conflict since 1938”, would have been for the VVS to “mount large-scale strike operations” to destroy the rival air force.