Two airfields in the deep rear of the Russian Federation received unmanned strikes. It was previously known about the damage to some strategic aircraft.
On Saturday, a large fire broke out at the Soltsy military airfield in the Novgorod region, where Tu-22M3 strategic bombers are based. The Russian Defense Ministry subsequently said that unidentified drones attacked the airbase and that an aircraft was damaged as a result of the impact.
It should be noted that the Soltsy airport is located about 650 kilometers from the Ukrainian border, and it was from here that the Russian Tu-22M3s left on August 15 and hit Lvov, Lutsk and the Dnieper. Also, the airbase is used to receive government aircraft during visits to Novgorod by Russian officials.
Not just a plane
On the eve of the American Institute for the Study of War, it was confirmed that the attack on Soltsy was carried out by the armed forces of Ukraine.
One of the Russian sources told ISW that the fire damaged or completely destroyed two aircraft, not one, and that they were Tu-22M3 long-range supersonic bombers.
The interlocutor also said that Russian troops have already transferred an undamaged aircraft to the Olenya airbase in the Murmansk region.
ISW analysts note that the drone strike on the Soltsy airbase caused a wave of criticism of the Russian Defense Ministry from Russian so-called military correspondents and bloggers. They accused the agency of failing to prevent a likely Ukrainian drone attack and minimize the severity of its consequences.
“The destruction or even destruction of two Tu-22M3 aircraft will not lead to significant consequences in a military sense, but the reaction of Russian military correspondents to this strike shows how the attacks inside of the Russian Federation is supporting Ukraine’s larger efforts to demoralize Russia,” the Institute report says. .
Attack on Shaikovka
Another UAV attack today took place at another airport – Shaikovka in the Kaluga region.
“The drone of the Armed Forces of Ukraine” fell on the territory of a military facility on Monday morning, August 21, around eight o’clock in the morning,” Mash Telegram channel reported.
According to him, Shaikovka was attacked by a civilian drone, with a reinforced battery and an improvised explosive device.
The channel says the drone was “shot down in time.” At the same time, a funnel is said to have appeared at the site of the fall and there was a fire.
According to preliminary information, a Tu-22M3 supersonic bomber was damaged.
Special operation GUR
Andrey Yusov, a spokesman for the Defense Ministry’s Main Intelligence Directorate, indicated that his department was behind the destruction of the TU-22M3 strategic bomber in Soltsy.
“This is the bomber that bombed Ukraine with Kh-22 and Kh-32 missiles, which our air defense system is difficult to cope with. The TU-22M3 costs several tens of millions of dollars. -22M3 and does not guarantee damage to one pa. that the Russians will stop the missile attack on Ukraine,” Yusov said in a comment to Suspilny.
He added that the attack on the Tu-22M3 aircraft was a psychological blow – now the Russians are forced to hide their bombers and pull additional air defense systems to the airfields.
Regarding Shaikovka, Yusov said that the strikes on the air base were carried out in coordination with the Main Intelligence Directorate. According to him, several enemy aircraft units were damaged in today’s attack.
The groups that carried out the attack on Shaikovka worked and successfully returned from central Russia, added the GUR representative.
Yusov stressed that work on the territory of the Russian Federation continues. We are talking about Moscow, the Moscow region and other places on the territory of the aggressor country.
“In many cases, citizens of the Russian Federation are taking action, who, for various reasons, including ideological ones, have taken steps to fight against the criminal dictatorial regime,” he said in a commentary in RBC-Ukraine.
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Source: korrespondent
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.