Ukrainian Special Services Disable Another Russian Tu-95 Bomber

Ukrainian special services have struck a Russian strategic Tu-95 bomber at the Engels-2 airbase in Russia's Saratov region, located roughly 800 km from the Ukrainian border. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced the operation on X, crediting it to operatives from the "Alpha" unit of Ukraine's security services.

Satellite imagery of the base reveals extensive damage to the right wing of the bomber, which is capable of carrying nuclear weapons. According to the Ukrainian outlet Militarnyj, the wingtip along with the right outer engine was torn off, making the aircraft unlikely to be repairable. The report notes the plane had been used for training purposes at the base, alongside another aircraft destroyed by Ukrainian drones on July 16.

How Many Bombers Does Russia Have Left?

The exact number of Tu-95s remaining in Russia's arsenal is unknown. More than 500 of these aircraft were built in total, and roughly a hundred were still in service before the war began, of which around 55 remained operational. As of 2023, Russia's long-range aviation fleet included 45 Tu-95MS aircraft and 18 upgraded Tu-95MSM variants.

In mid-July, the analytical resource Army Recognition estimated the active fleet at 27–34 airworthy aircraft, of which only 18–25 could realistically be deployed. The Oryx project, which tracks confirmed military equipment losses using photographic evidence, had recorded ten destroyed Tu-95s by early this year — most of them lost at a Siberian airfield during Ukraine's Operation Spider Web.

Following a series of strikes on the Engels-2 base, some bombers were relocated to the Olenya airbase in the Arctic, while others were dispersed to airfields in the Russian Far East. Since Tu-95 production ceased back in 1992, severely damaged aircraft are extremely difficult to restore — meaning Russia's fleet of cruise missile carriers continues to shrink.

How Russia Is Replacing Its Aging Fleet

Cruise missiles can also be launched from Tu-16 bombers — the largest supersonic bombers in the world — though Russia has few of them, and operating them is extremely costly. The Tu-22M3 carries fewer missiles, while the Su-34 frontline bomber carries even fewer.

Given these constraints, Russia is increasingly relying on ballistic missile strikes, against which Ukraine still lacks adequate defenses, whereas Ukrainian air defense forces have had considerable success intercepting cruise missiles.

From Nuclear Carrier to Cruise Missile Platform

The four-engine turboprop Tu-95 bomber entered service with Soviet long-range aviation back in the 1950s and was originally designed to deliver nuclear strikes. Over time, the aircraft was modernized and its role evolved.

With a cruising speed of around 850 km/h and a large airframe, the Tu-95 makes an easy target for surface-to-air missiles and supersonic fighters, which led to its use for long-range reconnaissance and patrol missions — multi-hour flights over the Pacific and Arctic Oceans that brought it close to the borders of Norway, the United Kingdom, and Japan.

The Tu-95MS variant, produced from the early 1980s until the collapse of the USSR, featured an upgraded wing and the capability to launch cruise missiles. It is in this role that Russia still uses the aircraft today, firing Kh-55/555 and Kh-101 missiles at Ukraine — each bomber capable of carrying up to eight such munitions.

Source: novinky.cz