Intel says

• Ukrainian drones hit Russian air base on Friday, destroying two SU-34 fighter bombers.

• Air Force Bases are used as a staging point for fighter jets dispersed from more vulnerable locations.

• The British Ministry of Defense said that despite these efforts, Russian aircraft remained under threat.

A new Western intelligence assessment says Ukrainian forces launched an attack on Russian air base, a backup site for fighters evacuated from more vulnerable locations.

Ukraine used a long-range drone to hit the Marinovka Air Force in Russia’s Volgograd region on Friday, 270 miles from the front line, destroying at least two SU-34 fighter bomber aircraft.

Russia uses Marinovka for daily combat operations, but it also serves as a safe haven for aircraft seized from other threatened air bases, the British Ministry of Defense said in Tuesday’s update.

The Su-34 fighter bomb plane was moved to Marinovka, Morozovsk Airbase, and it was closer to the front line after being hit by a Ukrainian drone in August 2024.

The attack on Marinovka on Friday was a joint operation by the Ukrainian SBU internal security agency, its special operations forces and other armies.

The attack destroyed two SU-34s and damaged two other aircraft, while the military said all four aircraft were destroyed, the SBU said. Ukraine also pointed out that drone attacks caused fires in maintenance and repair areas of air force bases. Business Insider cannot confirm the details of the operation immediately.

The Su-34 “Defender” fleet is a serious problem for Ukraine, as Russia has brought these aircraft with their highly destructive taxi bombs and has hired them to destructive effects.

Skid bombs are non-guided dumb bombs with special kits that turn them into precise guided munitions. Due to the short flight time, radar signatures and non-welded trajectories, they are difficult to intercept and have been used for fatal strikes in Ukrainian cities.

The Russian defense industry produces gliding bombs in all sizes. In larger ammunition, weighing over 6,000 pounds, which is very destructive to the impact.

The British Ministry of Defense said Russia relies on its SU-34 fleet to cross the front lines to perform “a large number of daily appearances, launching Glide bombs.” It further added that Moscow has now lost 30 of these aircraft since the full invasion began in February 2022.

Ukraine will contain the top priority of the Glide bomb threat and have carried out many profound strikes over the past year on Su-34 aircraft, their airports, and the storage locations of these ammunition.

For Kyiv, gliding bombs remain a major challenge. For example, on Sunday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Russian fighter jets fired nearly 1,100 of these ammunitions last week.

The Marinovka attack occurred in Ukraine’s unremitting efforts to reduce Russian aviation capabilities. On the weekend, Kiev conducted another drone strike targeting helicopter operations at bases in the occupied Crimea.

Read original articles about business insiders