Key facts
- Ukraine's Security Service (SBU) destroyed a Russian Tu-95 strategic bomber at the Engels air base.
- The bomber reportedly suffered critical damage, with its tail section severed.
- The aircraft was used by Russia to launch cruise missile strikes against Ukraine.
- The strike occurred at an air base nearly 800 kilometers from the Ukrainian border.
- Last year, the SBU destroyed at least eight Russian Tu-95MS strategic bombers.
The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) destroyed a Russian Tu-95 strategic bomber at the Engels air base in Russia's Saratov Oblast, approximately 800 kilometers from the Ukrainian border, President Volodymyr Zelensky and the agency announced on July 17. The Tu-95, a long-range strategic bomber that entered service in 1956, has been used by Russia to launch cruise missile strikes against Ukraine from within its own airspace.
Zelensky stated on X that Ukraine is increasing the price Russia pays for its aggression. The SBU reported that the bomber suffered "critical damage," with its tail section completely severed. They emphasized that each strategic bomber taken out of action saves Ukrainian lives and results in irrecoverable losses for the enemy, asserting that Russian strategic aviation can no longer feel safe even at remote airfields.
While the SBU and Zelensky did not specify the exact timing of the operation, Russian Telegram media channels reported a drone strike on the Engels air base overnight on July 16. The SBU also noted that as part of a previous operation, "Spiderweb," they destroyed at least eight Russian Tu-95MS strategic bombers last year. This prior operation, planned for about a year and a half, targeted 41 heavy bombers across four airfields using FPV drones smuggled into Russia, reportedly causing approximately $7 billion in damages and disabling 34% of cruise missile carriers.