Ukraine has cut an irreplaceable Russian Tu-95 bomber in two

A Russian strategic bomber literally split in two on the runway of an air base. So they show it satellite images confirming one of the most symbolic blows that Ukraine has dealt Russia in recent weeks. Below all the details.

what has happened. The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) affirms having destroyed a Tu-95 bomber at the Engels-2 air base, in the Russian region of Saratov, after an attack with drones that traveled nearly 800 kilometers to reach their target. According to the agency itself, the device suffered critical damage, since the tail section was completely torn off.

The news has circulated for days in different specialized media, although it is the images captured by satellite from the AviVector open source intelligence group that they have finished confirming the factlater corroborated with Planet Labs photographs obtained by Schemes. The images show a burned and broken Tu-95MS on the asphalt of Engels-2.

Why it matters. The Tu-95 is a relic of the Cold War, with its first flight in 1952, which remains one of the key pieces that Russia uses as a deterrent weapon. The Tu-95MS variant, derived from the Tu-142 maritime patrol aircraft, is the main launch platform for the Kh-101 cruise missiles, the same ones that Russia has used on many occasions against Ukrainian cities throughout the war.

Each device can carry up to six of these missiles on an internal rotating launcher, while the modernized Tu-95MSM version can carry up to eight, including the nuclear-capable Kh-102. That is to say, a single one of these bugs can execute a nuclear war mission from the air on its own, so the enthusiasm of the Ukrainian troops in shooting it down is understandable.

The fact that hurts Moscow the most. Russia can no longer manufacture Tu-95. The industrial infrastructure that produced them disappeared decades ago and their theoretical replacement, the PAK DA stealth bomber, remains on paper. According to collectKyiv Post, it is estimated that in 2023 Russia would have 45 units of the Tu-95MS and 18 of the modernized Tu-95MSM. Other sources cited by specialized media They place the current operational fleet at around 60 devices.

In your own words. The S.B.U. spread the coup on its Telegram channel as follows: “The SBU systematically destroys important elements of the Russian military machine. Each strategic bomber liquidated means dozens of missiles that will not be launched on Ukrainian cities, Ukrainian lives saved and tens of millions of dollars in irrecoverable losses for the enemy.” The agency added that Russian strategic aviation “can no longer feel safe even in its most remote air bases.”

The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, also celebrated the operation on his Telegram account, calling it a new success in what he calls Ukraine’s “long-range sanctions” against Russia, and defined it as an exercise in “active and fair defense” by his country.

It is not the first time that Russian aviation has been nullified in this way. And months before, the so-called Operation Cobweb had already dealt a heavy blow to Russia through the massive use of drones.

And now what. As might be expected, one less bomber does not change the course of the war. And just as they count According to TechRadar, Russia will most likely continue launching salvos of cruise missiles, beefing up its air defenses, hardening its hangars, and resorting to painted decoys to try to confuse Ukrainian drone operators.

Cover image | Sergey Kustov (Wikipedia)

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