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Attacking ‘Russian Heartland,’ Ukraine Cracks The Code To Conduct Long-Range Attacks With Soviet Technology

Recently, satellite imagery from deep inside Russian territory revealed that the Russian Aerospace Forces (VKS) had amassed several nuke-capable Tu-160 and Tu-95 bombers at its Engels-2 Air Force Base (AFB).

The news deeply alarmed Ukraine officials about an imminent Russian air raid and caused air raid sirens to blaze across the country. The Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU), which had already been pushed to the wall with Russian missile attacks, must have hatched a plan to rattle the Kremlin.

On December 5, two Russian AFBs – Engels and Dyagilevo came under attack by what was believed to be drones fired by Ukraine. Incidentally, these Air Bases are closer to the Russian capital Moscow than they are to Ukraine.

The Russian Ministry of Defense (MoD) said in the aftermath of the attack that it was carried out using modified Soviet-era Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs). Even though it did not specify which drone was responsible for the attack, military experts were quick to decipher that the drone in question was likely the Tu-141 Strinzh.

Even though the damage is not considered enormous, it has demonstrated that Ukraine has conquered a fundamental limitation plaguing its military operations, i.e., long-range strikes.

Engels and Dyagilevo, home to Russia’s long-range strategic bombers, lie in Russia’s depths and not too far away from the Russian capital.




Tu-141 Strizh- Wikimedia Commons

The effect of this attack, thus, is believed to have been profound and was expectedly followed by another intense missile attack from Russia.

It is pertinent to note that, overcoming its shortcomings, Ukraine has successfully turned the table on Russia after being repeatedly targeted by Russian drones and missiles for weeks.

Until now, most reported Ukrainian attacks on Russian airbases have been limited to locations much closer to Ukraine’s borders, i.e., Crimea or regions inside Russia that was far easier to reach with modified ‘kamikaze’ drones or short-range ballistic missiles.

The United States and other NATO allies have paid little heed to Ukraine’s request for long-range armor, including the long-range MGM-140 Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS). A recent report revealed that the ‘game-changing’ HIMARS delivered to Ukraine had their range curtailed by the US to avoid an unprecedented escalation.

On its part, while still using military assistance from the West, Ukraine has also evidently turned to its roots and is now using Soviet-era weaponry.

Direct Hit Close To The Heart Of Russia

In late June, a Ukrainian Tu-143 drone, closely related to the Tu-141 albeit with a much shorter range, was shot down in western Russia. However, the modified Tu-141, which was likely behind the recent attack on Russian Air Bases, has already demonstrated its capability to travel a very long range in the past.

In March this year, a bizarre incident occurred in which a Tu-141 Strizh reconnaissance drone, repurposed with an apparent warhead, crash-landed in Zagreb, Croatia.

The drone flew nearly 350 miles from the Ukrainian border to Croatia’s capital. It is believed to have a total range of more than 600 miles – enough to strike cities’ military facilities and Control and Command centers inside the humongous territory of Russia.




File Image: Tupolev Tu-141

Ukraine has been eyeing this capability for a long time because sending its limited combat aircraft like the Su-24 or Su-25 into Russian airspace would be a death knell for an already cornered air force.

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