Latest news with #Tor-M2
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Russia converts Kerch Airport in Crimea into military base, investigation shows
Kerch Airport in occupied Crimea is being repurposed from civilian to military use, according to a June 12 investigation by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty's Schemes project, citing satellite imagery and Russian real estate registry data. On March 4, 2025, the Russian-backed authorities officially transferred part of the airport's land to Russia's Defense Ministry for indefinite use, according to the investigation. Russia illegally annexed Crimea in 2014 after a discredited referendum under military occupation. Since then, the peninsula has become a heavily militarized zone. Satellite images from the Planet Labs imaging company show ongoing construction at the site, including the installation of protective and camouflage structures around the runway. The changes suggest the airport is being converted into a military facility capable of supporting drone operations or housing short-range air defense systems such as the Pantsir-S1 or Tor-M2, according to aviation expert Anatoly Khrapchinsky. The new runway will be suitable for drone launches, Khrapchinsky noted. Kerch Airport has not hosted regular commercial flights since 2007 and was previously used as a truck holding area for freight vehicles crossing the nearby ferry. That function was relocated in March 2025, officially as part of a "reorganization." The city of Kerch, situated near the strategic Kerch Strait, lies just across from Russia's Krasnodar Krai and is home to the crucial Crimean Bridge, built after Russia's illegal annexation of the peninsula in 2014. Read also: Germany to supply new Iris-T air defense systems to Ukraine, rules out Taurus missiles We've been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Yahoo
Russia turning Kerch airport in Crimea into military base, may launch Shahed drones from there
The Kerch airport, located in the east of occupied Crimea, is being converted from a civilian to a military facility, according to data from the Russian property registry and satellite images from Planet Labs. Source: Skhemy, a Radio Liberty project Details: Registry documents indicate that on 4 March 2025, the Russian authorities granted indefinite use of part of the airport's land to Russia's Ministry of Defence. Satellite images taken in February and June 2025 show new construction, including protective and camouflage structures around the runway. Planet Labs satellite photos indicate that the redevelopment of the Kerch airport is ongoing. The Kerch airport as of 5 June 2025. Photo: Skhemy Experts suggest these facilities could be used to house equipment related to unmanned aerial vehicles or air defence systems. Aviation expert Anatolii Khrapchynskyi, to whom the images were shown by journalists, pointed to the size of the camouflage shelters, noting they could potentially serve as technical bases for UAVs or house air defence systems such as the Pantsir-S1 or Tor-M2. "These could be platforms for launching or assembling drones, as well as positions for air defence systems," Khrapchynskyi said. He also noted that the runway's characteristics make it suitable for drone launches. The Kerch airport as of 5 June 2025. Photo: Skhemy Previously, the airport area had been used as a parking zone for freight vehicles awaiting ferry transport. However, in March 2025, this facility was relocated, officially explained as a "reorganisation of the company's operations". The last regular passenger flight from the Kerch airport took place in 2007. Background: On the night of 8-9 June, Ukrainian Special Operations Forces, in coordination with other defence forces units, carried out a strike on the Savasleyka airfield in Russia's Nizhny Novgorod Oblast. Support Ukrainska Pravda on Patreon!
Yahoo
17-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Ukrainians say civilian-funded drones destroyed 3 high-value Russian air defense systems in a single day
A drone unit in Ukraine said it destroyed three prized Russian air defense systems in a single day. It posted clips of drone attacks, saying it hit a Tor-M2, a Buk-M2, and a Buk-M3. In its post on Saturday, the unit also highlighted that the drones were funded by civilians. The drone unit of a Ukrainian brigade in Zaporizhzhia said it destroyed three advanced Russian air defense systems in a single day. The Ronin company of the 65th Mechanized Rifle Brigade posted footage of the first-person view drone attacks on Saturday, saying it took out a Tor-M2, a Buk-M2, and a Buk-M3. Those are some of Moscow's most prized mobile surface-to-air missile systems, with the Tor-M2 lauded in Russian state media in 2023 as a "cutting-edge" weapon that can counter drone swarms on the move. With a range of about 7.5 miles, the Tor-M2 is designed to engage up to 48 targets at once at low to medium altitudes. The Buk-M3 is also one of Russia's newest air defenses. Russian state media outlet TASS compared it in 2016 to the Medium Extended Air Defense System, a Western-made system meant to replace the Patriot. Each Patriot system is estimated to cost about $1.1 billion. The clips posted by the "Ronin" company on Saturday showed first-person view drones closely approaching the air defense systems before their video feeds went dark. While the drones' flight trajectory and distance to the Russian defenses indicate a successful hit, Business Insider couldn't independently verify if the systems were actively deployed assets or were destroyed. But the videos show yet another example of how the fighting in Ukraine is increasingly relying on cheap loitering munitions, even to counter high-value targets. Drone makers in Ukraine usually tell BI that they sell or create exploding drones for $750 to $1,500 apiece, depending on the device's size. Meanwhile, it's difficult to pinpoint how much Russia spends on its air defense systems. The Ukrainian military has estimated that the Tor-M2 costs about $27 million per unit and that the Buk-M3 costs about $40 to $50 million per unit. The Ronin company's post on Saturday also indicated that the drones used in the attack weren't officially supplied but received through civilian donations. "The sponsor of the defeat is the Sternenko community," the unit wrote on its social media channel, referring to the Ukrainian crowdfunding activist Serhii Sternenko. Sternenko, one of the biggest drone crowdfunders in Ukraine, acknowledged the attacks on Saturday, calling the drone unit "true masters of their craft" in a post on his Telegram channel. "We provide them with drones upon individual requests specifically for performing such tasks," he wrote, adding that the air defense systems were positioned at the Russian rear. Drone warfare continues to evolve on the battlefield in Ukraine. For example, with loitering munitions becoming so ubiquitous, the war fronts have increasingly been reported to become saturated with jammers. That prompted Russian units to bring fiber-optic drones to the fight last year, and Ukrainian companies and brigades have been following suit in manufacturing their own versions. Russia's defense ministry did not respond to a request for comment sent by BI outside regular business hours. Read the original article on Business Insider
