Ukrainian drone wrecks Russian long-range bomber: reports
A flagship Russian long-range bomber has been destroyed in a Ukrainian drone strike, according to reports.
Images posted on social media and analysed by BBC Verify show a Tupolev Tu-22 on fire at Soltsy-2 airbase, south of St Petersburg.
Moscow said that a drone was hit by small-arms fire but managed to “damage” a plane. Ukraine has not commented.
The Tu-22 can travel at twice the speed of sound and has been used extensively by Russia to attack cities in Ukraine.
The Russian defence ministry said in a statement that an attack by a “copter-type UAV” took place at around 10:00 Moscow time (08:00 BST) on Saturday.
It stated the location as “a military airfield in the Novgorod region”, where Soltsy-2 is situated.
“The UAV was detected by the airfield’s observation outpost and was hit with small-arms fire,” the ministry said.
“One airplane was damaged; there were no casualties as a result of the terrorist act.”
The statement also said a fire which broke out in the airfield parking lot was quickly extinguished.
However, images posted on the social media platform Telegram showed a large fire engulfing a jet with the distinctive nose cone of the Tu-22. BBC Verify analysed the images and believes them to be credible.
While the destruction of a single aircraft will have little effect on the potency of Moscow’s current 60-strong fleet, the operation highlights Kyiv’s growing ability to strike targets deep inside Russian territory.
Kyiv has over recent months launched dozens of fixed-wing unmanned aircraft to attack Moscow, a journey of several hundred miles. Soltsy-2 is around 400 miles (650km) from the Ukraine border.
However, the Russian MoD’s description of the drone as a “copter-type UAV” suggests a cheap, commercially available device launched at short range.
The Tu-22 is a Cold War-era, swing-wing supersonic bomber, codenamed “Backfire” by Nato, which has been used extensively in attacks on Ukrainian cities.
Modern versions such as the Tu-22M3 can reach speeds of Mach 2 (2,300km/h or 1,430mp/h) and can carry up to 24,000kg of weaponria, Chechnya, and Georgia and most recently in Ukraine.
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. The regiment is based at Soltsy-2.
BBC Verify confirmed the location of the Ukrainian drone attack on Soltsy-2 by comparing visual clues – such as the appearance of aircraft and bays – to historical satellite images of the airbase.
The weather conditions at the time – wet and overcast – also matched the weather in the images, as well as other witness photos of the incident.
The remnants of the aircraft visible in the footage are consistent with that of a Tu-22M3.
Historical satellite imagery analysed by BBC Verify shows that aircraft of this kind were stationed at the base.
On Monday, a spokesperson for Ukraine’s defence intelligence service said another military aircraft had been damaged in a drone attack in Russia’s Kaluga region.
Russian media also reported the attack, but denied there had been any damage.
This article was first reported by BBC News
