RAINER SAKS ⟩ Irreversible damage: Ukrainian drone attack renders Russian strategic bomber unflyable

A Ukrainian special services drone attack on July 16 struck the tail section of a Russian Tu-95MS strategic bomber at the Engels airbase, rendering the aircraft unflyable. This incident marks a significant strategic loss for Russia, especially as these bombers are no longer in production.

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The Ukrainian special services drone attack on July 16 hit the tail section of a Tu-95MS strategic bomber, making it unflyable.

Following previous successful Ukrainian drone attacks in recent years, the Russian military command no longer keeps strategic bombers permanently stationed at Engels airbase. Instead, they are hidden in Siberia. Aircraft are brought to Engels only for short periods to load cruise missiles for attacks on Ukrainian cities or for other necessary work.

The timing of the attack suggests Russia may have been preparing to use strategic bombers from Engels for operations, given that the Ukrainian forces used both ballistic and cruise missiles for attacks on July 16. The drone strike successfully hit one of these bombers, highlighting Ukraine's capability to strike deep into Russian territory.

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Russian military command no longer permanently keeps strategic bombers at the Engels airbase territory. They are hidden in Siberia after last year's successful Ukrainian drone attacks.

This event underscores the ongoing vulnerability of Russia's strategic assets to Ukrainian aerial attacks. The inability to replace these aging bombers means that each loss has a lasting impact on Russia's long-range strike capabilities.

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This is therefore a strategic level loss for Russia. As mentioned before, these aircraft are no longer being built.