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Yahoo
21-03-2025
- Politics
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Russian Bomber Base Suffered Major Damage To Munitions Area In Ukrainian Drone Attack
Satellite imagery obtained by The War Zone confirms that ammunition and weapons storage bunkers at Russia's Engels Air Base were destroyed in a Ukrainian drone attack on Thursday. The attack resulted in a massive fireball and mushroom cloud. You can read our initial story about it here. A high-resolution image, taken today by Maxar Technologies, shows most of the damage occurred at storage areas about a mile east of the runway. At least a dozen storage facilities and other nearby buildings were destroyed in the attack. It also created several large craters. The severe damage was caused by massive secondary explosions when the drones detonated explosive ordnance stored there. Targeting munitions storage areas for their secondary effects is a common tactic used by both sides when employing standoff weaponry. You can see the same area in an image taken before the attack below. There were claims on Russian Telegram channels that a Tu-95MS Bear-H bomber may have been damaged by shrapnel, but there is no indication in the satellite images of major damage to aviation assets at the base. Still, shrapnel damage without secondary effects would not show up in this resolution of imagery, so it is possible. The full image taken by Maxar shows the distance from the area that was attacked and the main apron. According to Ukrainian accounts, there were three Tu-95MS Bear-H and two Tu-160 Blackjack strategic bombers at Engels when the drones struck. An Il-76 Candid airlifter had also recently arrived. At least two pilots of a Bear bomber were killed in the attack, according to Russian Telegram channels. There was no indication whether they were in the bomber at the time. The War Zone cannot independently confirm that claim. According to the ruSSian sources a crew of the Tu-95SM were killed in yesterday's attack on the Engels-2 air base. — 𝔗𝔥𝔢 𝕯𝔢𝔞𝔡 𝕯𝔦𝔰𝔱𝔯𝔦𝔠𝔱△ (@TheDeadDistrict) March 21, 2025 'A warehouse of aviation ammunition at a military airfield was hit, and a fire started at the facility,' the Astra news outlet reported on Friday. 'Several hours later, ammunition began to detonate there – at least three explosions occurred.' Video and images emerging on social media after the attack showed a massive explosion and a dark cloud rising over the city. Russia's Engels-2 airbase, having a rough morning. — Jay in Kyiv (@ 2025-03-20T06:10:39.866Z Russia: Ukraine struck the Engels Military Air Base in Saratov region. — Igor Sushko (@ 2025-03-20T04:09:14.037Z /1. Tonight drones targeted Russian military airfield in Engels, Saratov region of Russia. A strong explosion was reported. — Special Kherson Cat (@ 2025-03-20T07:19:10.749Z There was also video showing the tremendous shockwave that damaged nearby buildings. There is a village located about a tenth of a mile east of the damaged ammunition bunkers, which is likely where the video below was filmed. Near the Engels air base. — 𝔗𝔥𝔢 𝕯𝔢𝔞𝔡 𝕯𝔦𝔰𝔱𝔯𝔦𝔠𝔱△ (@TheDeadDistrict) March 20, 2025 At least three servicemen were injured in the attack, Astra stated. At least five civilians were injured by the resulting fire. In addition, the windows in the Engels City Clinical Hospital No. 1 were blown out by falling debris. 'A total of 120 people were evacuated from the danger zone,' Astra explained. At least '180 private houses were damaged during the attack. The authorities introduced a state of emergency at the municipal level.' The attack involved more than 50 drones, according to Astra. The strikes were carried out by Ukrainian-made long-range one-way attack drones, with at least one video seemingly indicating the use of the twin-boom Lyutyy or the visually similar PD-2. Both these types have been used to attack targets deep inside Russia on multiple occasions. Engels – a major military airfield. Clearly air defence was not good enough.A mix of improved Ukraine weaponry, overwhelming air defence and/or previously taking out radars to strip the base of during the attack, drones were filmed flying smoothly overhead. — Tim White (@TWMCLtd) March 20, 2025 The base, 300 miles from the Ukrainian border, is home to the 22nd Heavy Bomber Aviation Division, which operates one squadron of Tu-95MS Bear-H bombers, another squadron of supersonic Tu-22M3 Backfire-C bombers and is the primary base for the Tu-160 Blackjack bombers. The latter aircraft have been widely employed in the conflict in Ukraine and especially in the standoff strikes that have targeted Ukraine's energy infrastructure, among other objectives, civilian and military, across the country. Engels has been a frequent target for Ukraine. It was attacked three times in the month of December 2022 alone. On at least one of those occasions, the Russian Ministry of Defense said the air base was attacked by Soviet-made jet-powered unmanned aerial vehicles modified by Ukraine to carry explosives. Those attacks — which also targeted Dyagilevo Air Base — resulted in damage to at least one Tu-22M3 Backfire-C bomber and apparently also to a Tu-95MS. More recently, in January of this year, we reported on a huge fire close to Engels Air Base, caused by what Russian officials described as a 'massive' Ukrainian drone attack. The strike was on the strategically important fuel storage tank farm for Engels and the fire raged for several days after, as seen in the image in the embedded tweet below: Russia's Rosreserv fuel depot in Engels continued to burn today after a Ukrainian drone attack last night, with multiple additional storage tanks igniting throughout the day. Within the last hour, the regional governor of Saratov declared a state of emergency. — OSINTtechnical (@Osinttechnical) January 8, 2025 The latest attack came as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky agreed to a tentative agreement in principle with Russia calling for a mutual pause on power infrastructure attacks. However, there was no timetable for implementation and both sides continue to launch strikes against each other. Contact the author: howard@
Yahoo
21-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Explosion at burning oil depot in Russia's Krasnodar Krai engulfs another tank
An explosion occurred at an oil depot in Russia's Krasnodar Krai on the night of 20-21 March, which continues to burn following a drone attack on 19 March. Two people have been injured, the road to the city of Krasnodar has been closed and residents of the area have been advised not to go outside. Source: Krasnodar Krai Operations Centre, a Russian authority; Kremlin-aligned Russian news agency TASS; Russian Telegram channels Quote from operations centre: "While extinguishing the fire at the oil depot, an explosion of petroleum products and a release of burning oil occurred due to a burning tank rupture in the Kavkazsky district. Three fire appliances were damaged and two firefighters were injured as a result." Details: It was reported that the fire had spread to another tank. "Thus, two tanks are burning now, along with isolation valves, petroleum products in a containment area around the tanks and the portion of burning petroleum products ejected beyond the tanks by the explosion. The total fire area has increased to 10,000 sq m," the operations centre reported. It was noted that 456 firefighters and 181 fire appliances were involved in extinguishing the fire. The road towards Krasnodar has been closed. Authorities have advised residents of the Kavkazsky district, where the oil depot is burning, to stay indoors and keep their windows closed. Background: On 19 March, drones attacked the Naftatrans' oil depot in the village of Kavkazskaya. At the time, the oil depot contained 100,000 tonnes of petroleum products – five tanks of 20,000 cubic metres each. According to the Astra Telegram channel, a pipeline between two tanks at the oil depot was damaged in the attack by five drones. One of the tanks caught fire several hours after the attack. This oil depot is connected to a railway oil terminal and a connecting pipeline leading to NPS-6 Kropotkin, which is part of the Caspian Pipeline Consortium system. Oil is transported to Novorossiysk from there. Thirteen kilometres from this oil depot is the Kropotkinskaya oil pumping station, which was put out of operation by a drone attack on 17 February. Support Ukrainska Pravda on Patreon!
Yahoo
20-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Drones attack military air base in Russia's Engels: fire breaks out
A fire has broken out at a military air base in the city of Engels in Russia's Saratov Oblast following a drone attack. Source: Saratov Oblast Governor Roman Busargin; Russian Telegram channels Details: The Astra Telegram channel stated early in the morning that a lot of smoke could be seen in one of the town's districts following the UAV strike. The area in question is located near the Engels-2 military air base. Column of smoke Photo: Astra Telegram channel Local Telegram channels also wrote that the authorities had begun evacuating houses located near the air base. Later, Busargin confirmed this information. Column of smoke Photo: Astra Telegram channel "For safety reasons, due to the fire at the air base, an evacuation is being conducted for those living in areas adjacent to the facility, such as the allotment association communities. All operational services are at the scene," he reported. He stated that the UAV attack had damaged around 30 houses and summer residences in numerous allotment association communities. For reference: The Engels-2 military air base is home to Tu-95MS and Tu-160 aircraft of Russia's 22nd Guards Heavy Bomber Aviation Division. Background: Earlier, Russian Telegram channels reported a drone attack on an oil refinery in the city of Engels in Russia's Saratov Oblast on the night of 19-20 March. Later, the Russian Defence Ministry claimed that air defence forces had downed 132 Ukrainian drones over various Russian oblasts and temporarily occupied Crimea. Support Ukrainska Pravda on Patreon!
Yahoo
11-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Drones attack oil depot in Serpukhov, Moscow Oblast
UAVs have attacked the Oka-Centre oil depot in the city of Serpukhov, Moscow Oblast, Russia, as reported by Russian Telegram channels. Source: Russian Telegram channels Astra and Mash Details: Astra reported a drone strike on the Oka-Centre oil depot, while Mash reported that the depot's tanks were allegedly damaged by debris from a downed drone. Serpukhov Mayor Alexei Shymko did not provide information on the consequences of the strike or any casualties. However, Moscow Oblast Governor Alexei Vorobyov had previously mentioned Serpukhov among the cities that were targeted. Photos and videos confirm that the oil depot sustained damage. Photo: Russian Telegram channels Astra The Oka-Centre facility specialises in storing and distributing various types of fuel, including petrol and diesel. Earlier, reports emerged of a large-scale drone attack on Moscow. Russian authorities claimed that 74 drones were shot down over the capital. Russia's Ministry of Defence stated that a total of hundreds of drones attacked the country on the night of 10-11 March, with 337 allegedly intercepted. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov stated that the UAV attack "could significantly harm the emerging trend in contacts" regarding Russia's war against Ukraine. Background: Russia claims to be open to negotiations to end its war against Ukraine but insists on doing so on its own terms, which include maintaining control over four Ukrainian oblasts that are currently only partially occupied by Russian forces. At the same time, Russia continues to launch daily missile and drone attacks on civilian areas across Ukraine, destroying residential districts and energy infrastructure while killing civilians. Ukraine has previously identified its military targets inside Russia as arms production facilities and fuel depots supplying the Russian military. Photos and videos from Russian Telegram channels confirm that Ukrainian forces are striking only military-industrial sites in Russia. Support Ukrainska Pravda on Patreon!
Yahoo
10-03-2025
- Politics
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Watch: Russian special forces crawl through gas pipelines to ambush Ukrainians
Ukraine has said its forces thwarted a surprise attack conducted by Russia through a gas pipeline in Kursk on Sunday, claiming enemy losses were 'very high'. Russian special forces crept about 15km into a gas pipeline, spending several days inside, in an attempt to surprise Ukrainian forces near Sudzha in western Kursk, according to pro-Russian military bloggers. The attack comes as Russia intensifies efforts to recapture the Kursk region, which Ukraine took eight months ago and has used as a strategic bargaining chip. The push to retake Kursk follows Donald Trump, the US president, cutting intelligence sharing with Ukraine, leaving Kyiv 'blind' to incoming attacks. Ukraine's general staff confirmed that Russian 'sabotage and assault groups' attempted to use the pipeline to establish a foothold outside Sudzha but were 'detected in a timely manner'. 'At present, Russian special forces are being detected, blocked and destroyed. The enemy's losses in Sudzha are very high,' the general staff reported. Ukraine's air assault forces launched missile and artillery strikes, along with UAV systems, to target the invaders. Credit: via Scopal Earlier, Russian Telegram channels published videos of special forces in gas masks, some swearing, inside what looked like a large pipe. Sudzha, a crucial gas transfer hub, was once part of Russia's natural gas pipeline system to Europe. Kyiv has maintained its presence in the region as leverage in potential peace talks. Ukraine's incursion into Kursk last August marked the most significant attack on Russian territory since the Nazi invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941. Within days, Ukrainian units had captured 1,000 square kilometres of territory, including the strategic border town of Sudzha, and taken hundreds of Russian prisoners of war. However in recent months, Russian forces have pushed Ukrainian troops back across the region, placing tens of thousands in danger of being encircled. Open source maps on Friday showed Kyiv's contingent in Kursk on the verge of being surrounded after rapid Russian advances. Ukraine's soldiers in the region are also weary and bloodied by relentless assaults of more than 50,000 troops, including some from Russia's ally North Korea. On Sunday, Russia claimed the capture of two villages in eastern Ukraine: Kostyantynopil in Donetsk and Novenke in Sumy. Former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev said that recent advances by Russian forces against Ukraine in the Kursk region meant that Kyiv's soldiers were almost surrounded. In a post on Telegram about the fighting in Kursk, Medvedev wrote: 'The lid of the smoking cauldron is almost closed. The offensive continues.' Volodymyr Zelensky, the Ukrainian president, said on Sunday that Russian forces had launched more than 1,200 guided bombs, 870 drones, and over 80 missiles across Ukraine in the past week, resulting in at least 14 deaths on Friday and Saturday. Russian advances in 2024 and the US president's shift in policy have caused fears among European leaders that Ukraine will lose the war and that Mr Trump is turning his back on Europe. The US paused military aid and the sharing of intelligence with Ukraine this month after a meeting between Mr Trump and Mr Zelensky descended into acrimony in front of the world's media. Ukraine is set to hold negotiations with US officials in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, with Washington hoping to forge a deal on a ceasefire and a 'framework' for a potential peace agreement.
