Almost all Tu-95MS bombers from Olenya took part in Sunday morning attack on Ukraine

Nine or ten strategic bombers from Olenya airbase in Murmansk region participated in the massive strike on multiple regions in Ukraine overnight on November 17.

Nine or ten strategic bombers from Olenya airbase in Murmansk region participated in the massive strike against the energy grid in multiple regions in Ukraine overnight on November 17.Ukraine’s Air Force reports that 16 Tu-95MS bombers were active, of which nine or ten came from Russia’s northern airfield in Olenya in the Murmansk region. The bombers flew into positions in far distance from the border with Ukraine, over the Saratov region and Caspian Sea region, from where they launched multiple Kh-101/55 cruise missiles in the morning on Sunday. Explosions were recorded in major Ukrainian cities, among them Odesa and Kyiv. Journalists with the Kyiv Independent reported about multiple explosions in the capital between 6:30 and 7:15 a.m. local time.

Missiles and drones came in from different directions, including sea-launched Caliber cruise missiles from the Black Sea. Targeting energy grid Russia has targeted “power generation and transmission facilities throughout Ukraine,” the Kyiv Independent quoted energy minister Herman Halushchenko saying. President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed: “The enemy’s target was our energy infrastructure across Ukraine. Unfortunately, some facilities sustained damage from direct hits and falling debris,” Zelensky wrote on X. Damages to the energy system cause a growing risk of troubled electricity and heat as the winter starts.

Also apartment blocks and other civilian targets are hit in what seems to be one of the largest attacks on Ukraine since the start of the full-scale invasion in February 2022. 120 cruise missiles and 90 drones were detected incoming across Ukraine, according to Zelensky. Covered with tires Russia’s strategic air forces relocated more than 10 Tu-95MS and Tu-160 long-range bombers to Olenya in spring 2023. Located 1,800 km north of the border with Ukraine, the bombers were supposed to be out of reach from Ukrainian drones. That, however, didn’t last long.

Several drone attacks towards Olenya airbase were reported in July, August and September this year. The Barents Observer recently reported about how Russia in recent months has enforced its air defense systems around Olenya. Also, the bombers themself are nowadays seen by satellite images with tires on the wings, allegedly aimed to confuse image-matching navigation systems used by incoming drones.