As the Russia-Ukraine war continues to test the strengths of both sides with the combatants attempting to seek maximum damage, Kiyv’s forces conducted a decisive drone strike against Moscow’s strategic long-range bomber Tupolev Tu-22 at an airbase named Soltsy-2, eventually destroying it.
The strategic bomber Tu-22 was capable move twice the speed of sound. It was decisive because Russians used it to attack Ukrainian cities.
An attack by a copter-type UAV took place at around 10:00 Moscow time (08:00 BST) Saturday, the Russian Ministry of Defence said.
It described in its statement the target location as “a military airfield in the Novgorod region”, where Soltsy-2 is situated.
The ministry noted: “The UAV was detected by the airfield’s observation outpost and was hit with small-arms fire. One airplane was damaged; there were no casualties as a result of the ‘terrorist act’.”
The statement also underlined that a fire which broke out in the airfield parking lot was quickly extinguished.
The attack by Ukraine shows its ability and the force of counteroffensive which was much-awaited as President Vlodomyr Zelenesky pledged to take war into Russian territories earlier this month.
Recently, Kiyv’s attacks on Moscow using drones have considerably increased.
According to prosecutors in Kyiv, 30 people were killed when a Tu-22-launched missile hit a block of flats in Dnipro in January.
They said Russia’s 52nd Guards Bomber Aviation Regiment carried out the attack — is based at Soltsy-2.
A spokesperson for Ukraine’s defence intelligence service said Monday, another military aircraft had been damaged in a drone attack in Russia’s Kaluga region.
Russian media also reported the attack, quoting the defence ministry as saying that the air defences have downed an aircraft headed for Moscow, preventing another attempted “Ukrainian” strike on the capital.
“On August 21, at around 6:50am Moscow time, an attempted terrorist attack by the Kyiv regime involving one plane-type unmanned aerial vehicle was thwarted,” the statement read.
Hours later, the ministry also said in a separate statement that another UAV had been shot down over the Istra district of Moscow Region at 8:16am Monday.
