Ukraine's Special Operators Just Executed Another Air Base Raid in Russia—And Knocked Out Four Sukhoi Fighter-Bombers
Two Su-34s were reportedly destroyed and two damaged in the drone raid on Marinovka air base
On June 1, the Ukrainian state security service—the SBU—smuggled long-haul trucks full of explosive first-person-view drones close to five Russian air bases, the farthest around 3,700 miles from Ukraine.
Around 100 of the tiny FPVs, each weighing just a few pounds, swarmed the bases. Relaying signals back to their operators via Russia’s own cellular phone network, the drones homed in on Russian air force strategic bombers and other warplanes parked on the bases’ tarmacs.
When the smoke cleared, satellite imagery confirmed no fewer than 13 planes had been destroyed. The losses included 11 irreplaceable Tupolev Tu-22M and Tu-95 strategic bombers: around 14% of Russia’s active bombers.
Three weeks later on Friday, the SBU and Ukraine’s special operations command, the SSO, struck again—and knocked out as many as four Russian air force Sukhoi Su-34 fighter-bombers at Marinovka air base in Volgorod Oblast, 180 miles from the front line in Ukraine.
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