Russia Claims Ukraine Modified Soviet-Era Jet Drones To Hit Two Bomber Bases

An ex-Soviet Tu-141 variant in storage in Moscow in 2012.Alan Wilson photo  

Warzone/The Drive: Ukraine Modified Soviet-Era Jet Drones To Hit Bomber Bases, Russia Claims 

The blasts at two bomber bases deep in Russia came only hours before Moscow launched its latest cruise missile barrage against Ukraine.  

While the exact causes remain unclear at this stage, explosions shook two different Russian airbases, Engels and Dyagilevo, earlier today. The Russian Ministry of Defense has claimed that Ukraine used Soviet-made jet-powered unmanned aerial vehicles to prosecute the attacks, but that the drones were intercepted by Russian air defenses. 

Nevertheless, the attacks have caused some loss of life, although the extent of the material damage remains ambiguous for now. Meanwhile, Anton Gerashchenko, an adviser to Ukraine’s Ministry of Internal Affairs, has claimed that drones of an undisclosed type were responsible for the explosion on at least one of the two airbases. All in all, the two incidents add to the evidence that Ukraine has indeed found a way of launching longer-range attacks on Russian airfields using adapted Cold War-era reconnaissance drones.  

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Update: Ukraine Pulled Ex-Soviet Recon Drones Out Of Storage, Added Bombs And Sent Them Hurtling Toward Russia (Forbes)  

WNU Editor: No one knows how many more of these drones are in Ukraine. But if there are more than the two that were used today, expect more attacks in the future. Maybe the Kremlin itself. 

Update #2: It looks like there are other drones in Ukraine's arsenal that can be used against targets deep inside Russia .... Attacks on Russian air bases put spotlight on new Ukrainian drone program (CNN).

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