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Novaya Gazeta Europe
15-07-2025
- Politics
- Novaya Gazeta Europe
Ukrainian drone wreckage injures 24 in Russian city of Voronezh — Novaya Gazeta Europe
The aftermath of the attack on Voronezh on 15 July 2025. Photo: Voronezh No. 1 / Telegram Twelve Ukrainian drones were shot down overnight over the city of Voronezh, in western Russia, the region's Governor Alexander Gusev has reported. Gusev said 24 people were injured in the attack, 17 of whom were hospitalised. Most had suffered cuts and shrapnel wounds. One man was in a coma, while another had suffered lung damage. Eyewitnesses posted footage of the aftermath of the Ukrainian drone attack on the city, which showed smashed windows and burning cars. Gusev said the wreckage of one drone had landed in the city centre, damaging several apartments in high-rise buildings, while houses were also damaged in the suburbs. Ukrainian drones also struck Russia's central Lipetsk region overnight, with Governor Igor Artamonov saying a drone had hit an industrial area in the city of Yelets, injuring one person. Telegram breaking news channel ASTRA studied eyewitness footage and determined that a fire had broken out in an industrial area near the premises of Energia, a power company. The Russian Defence Ministry said air defences had shot down 55 Ukrainian drones overnight in all — 32 over the Belgorod region, 12 over the Voronezh region, three over the Lipetsk region, one each over the Rostov and Kursk regions, and six over the Black Sea.
Indian Express
15-07-2025
- Business
- Indian Express
Second GE 404 engine delivered to HAL, 12 Tejas Mk 1 A to be delivered by year-end: Officials
Twelve Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas will be ready to be rolled out by December this year, of which six have already been lined up, government officials privy to the latest developments have said. Officials confirmed to The Indian Express that the second GE F404 engine from US defence major GE Aerospace has already landed in India as of Monday and would be taken to the state-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) facility in Bengaluru, where they will be integrated with the indigenous Tejas Mk 1 A aircraft. In August 2021, HAL placed an order worth Rs 5,375 crore for 99 F404 engines with GE Aerospace to power the indigenously made Tejas Mk-1A. The first of these jet engines was delivered to HAL after a delay of nearly a year and a half, in April this year. The Indian Air Force has placed an order to procure 83 Mk 1 A fighter jets. The defence ministry is also in the process of procuring 97 more LCA Mk-1As at a cost of around Rs 67,000 crore Officials said that GE Aerospace has said it will deliver 10 engines by the end of this year. 'It takes about a month to integrate the engines and do the tests. The process first involves building the fuselage, then getting the lobing and piping done, followed by combining the landing gear,' an official explained. 'After integrating the engines, the ground runs, including the high-speed runs, are carried out for all thorough checks,' the official added. The deliveries of LCA Tejas Mk 1A were scheduled to begin in March 2024, but were delayed by over a year. Last month, HAL Chairperson and Managing Director D K Sunil attributed the delay to GE Aerospace missing the deadline to supply the aircraft engines to HAL for Tejas Mk 1A. The development came weeks after IAF Chief Air Marshal AP Singh expressed concerns over delays in the delivery of the jets. The timely induction of the indigenous fighter jets, including Tejas Mk 1A, is crucial to hold the IAF's dwindling squadron strength. The IAF has phased out most of its MiG-21 squadrons, and early next decade, it is likely to begin phasing out other ageing fighter squadrons. According to officials, HAL plans to produce 16 fighter jets next year, provided the engine deliveries from the US are on schedule. The original plans were to produce 16 aircraft every year and complete deliveries of all jets by 2030. The Tejas Mk 1 A jets have multiple upgrades over the Tejas Mk 1 version, including integration of the AESA radar, Advanced Electronic Warfare Suite with a jammer, and Beyond Visual Range (BVR) capabilities with integration of Derby and the indigenous ASTRA missile. Officials said testing for the indigenously-made ASTRA missile firings from the aircraft is underway at present. Earlier this month, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh asked US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth to expedite the deliveries of GE F404 engines that will power the Tejas Mk 1 A. The engine deliveries from GE Aerospace were originally scheduled to begin in 2023, but were delayed due to COVID-19 pandemic and supply chain issues.
Time of India
11-07-2025
- Science
- Time of India
DRDO's ASTRA: BVRAAM missile successfully test-fired; IAF conducts trial from Su-30 MKI
Agencies NEW DELHI: Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and the Indian Air Force (IAF) on Friday successfully conducted trials of the Beyond Visual Range Air-to-Air missile (BVRAAM) 'ASTRA' with an indigenous RF seeker against high-speed unmanned aerial targets at different ranges. Conducted off the coast of Chandipur in Odisha, the test validated the Astra missile's advanced precision and lethality. The missile scored a direct hit on a flying target, with all onboard subsystems performing flawlessly and meeting the mission's technical objectives. "DRDO and @IAF_MCC conducted successful trials of Beyond Visual Range Air-to-Air missile (BVRAAM) 'ASTRA' with indigenous RF seeker against high-speed unmanned aerial targets at different ranges, target aspects and launch platform conditions from Su-30 Mk-I platform off the coast of Odisha," DRDO posted on X. ASTRA is designed to take out aerial targets at distances exceeding 100 kilometres. Its cutting-edge guidance and navigation systems give it the ability to strike with high accuracy. The missile has already been inducted into service with the Indian Air Force (IAF), bolstering the nation's air defence framework. The success of this trial is seen as a key milestone toward the operational deployment of the LCA AF MK1A variant, which is a more advanced version of the indigenous fighter jet. It reflects the increasing maturity of India's homegrown defence production ecosystem. Behind the achievement is the coordinated effort of multiple organisations: the Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA), DRDO, Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), Centre for Military Airworthiness and Certification (CEMILAC), Directorate General of Aeronautical Quality Assurance (DG-AQA), Indian Air Force, and the test range team. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh lauded the teams involved in the successful mission, praising the synergy among the various stakeholders. Dr Samir V Kamat, chairman of DRDO and Secretary of the Department of Defence Research and Development, also commended the collaborative spirit of scientists, engineers, and technicians who contributed to the milestone test. This successful firing of Astra from the LCA platform not only demonstrates the missile's capabilities but also reinforces India's growing technological edge in aerial warfare systems.
Novaya Gazeta Europe
09-07-2025
- Novaya Gazeta Europe
Dozens of Russian soldiers reported dead in sneak pipeline attack during recapture of Sudzha — Novaya Gazeta Europe
ASTRA contacted the man, Igor Garus from St. Petersburg, after video footage of Operation Stream was published by Telegram channel Severny Kanal on Monday. Though a previous analysis by open-source investigative group Conflict Intelligence Team alleged Severny Kanal had ties to Ukraine's psychological warfare unit, ASTRA nonetheless tracked Garus down to speak to him. Dozens of Russian servicemen who crawled through a gas pipeline near the town of Sudzha, in Russia's Kursk region, in March either suffocated, committed suicide or died of panic, according to a man thought to have participated in the operation, Telegram news channel ASTRA reported on Tuesday. There was a lack of oxygen in the pipeline the servicemen were making their way through to get to Sudzha, a town then occupied by the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU), according to Garus. There were also periods where the servicemen got stuck due to there being so many personnel and so much equipment in the pipeline. Garus said that several soldiers had suffocated, while others committed suicide. He also stated that there were soldiers who died of panic as they tried to get out of the pipe. He said he didn't reach the end of the pipe himself, adding that it was difficult to evacuate the dead as there was so little room for manoeuvre. He said Chechen Akhmat special forces had literally fought over the water being distributed in the pipe. 'People were going crazy. There was no oxygen, you were inhaling gas, you were hungry. One guy shot himself. … Another guy smashed his head open. … There was panic,' Garus said, according to ASTRA. Garus refused to tell ASTRA which unit he belonged to, but corroborated the claims from the video, which he said was not intended for publication. In March, the Russian authorities revealed that servicemen had passed through the Urengoy-Pomary-Uzhhorod pipeline to reach the town of Sudzha and attack AFU positions as part of Operation Stream. The Russian Defence Ministry announced the recapture of the town within days.
Miami Herald
17-06-2025
- Politics
- Miami Herald
Ukraine HIMARS Destroys Russian Convoy Near Gas Station: Report
Russian troops were killed in a strike by Ukraine's forces on a convoy next to an abandoned gas station using a U.S.-supplied HIMARS (High Mobility Artillery Rocket System), it has been reported. The Telegram channel ASTRA said the strike took place in Makiivka, within the occupied Donetsk region last week and posted video that purportedly showed the aftermath of burning vehicles on the side of the road. Newsweek could not independently verify the footage and has contacted the Russian Defense Ministry for comment. Ukrainian media outlets reported the strike, which shows the continuing role that the U.S-supplied weapon still plays on the battlefield. It comes as Kyiv's forces made gains near Makiivka, according to the U.S.-based Institute for the Study of War (ISW). ASTRA reported that the Ukrainian HIMARS hit the Russian convoy in a strike in Makiivka on June 13 around 20 miles from the front line in Russian-occupied eastern Ukraine. The strike also destroyed a Russian Defense Ministry bus, and military vehicles. The wheeled HIMARS fired several rockets and hit the convoy with hundreds of thousands of tungsten fragments, according to a clip of the incident's aftermath posted by X account WarTranslated. Ukrainian media reports said eight Russian servicemen were killed and another 12 were injured. Most were in military unit 71443. Two civilians were also killed, ASTRA said next to footage filmed from a vehicle driving past the scene, which shows a column of cars, a large fire and a hole in the road. In its update on Sunday, the ISW said that geolocated footage published showed that Ukrainian forces had recently advanced northwest of Makiivka. Ukraine continues to use HIMARS on the battlefield. In February this year, the weapon was reported to be behind a strike on a Russian military headquarters in Selydove in the Donetsk region, which killed a large number of commanders. Overnight Monday, a Russian attack on Kyiv killed at least 15 people and injured 124 others during a nine-hour long barrage of kamikaze attack drones, as well as cruise and ballistic missiles. The pro-Ukrainian Euromaidan X channel: "In occupied Makiivka, the Russians gathered in a column. In vain. Because Mr. HIMARS came." Ukrainian X user Maria Drutska, next to purported footage of the strike's aftermath: "The occupiers are scattered along the road." What Happens Next Ukraine's forces are likely to continue using HIMARS to strike at Russian targets. The military analyst David Axe said in a Substack article that Russian convoys are the kinds of target Ukraine's roughly three dozen surviving HIMARS are looking to target. However, Russian drone crews are improving their strikes on HIMARS, with Moscow's Iskander missile batteries able to hit them up to 57 miles away, he added. Related Articles American Killed in Deadly Russian Strike on KyivPutin Says Americans 'Galore' Agree With HimRussia Accuses UK of Sabotage Plans With US In 'NATO Lake'Ukraine Delegates Storm Out Over Speech by Alexei Navalny's Daughter 2025 NEWSWEEK DIGITAL LLC.
