Russian Kinzhal missiles strike Ukrainian airfield infrastructure

The Russian Armed Forces launched a group strike with Kinzhal aeroballistic missiles on Ukrainian airfield infrastructure.

Photo: commons.wikimedia.org by Andrei Shmatko, CC BY-SA 4.0

Sergei Lebedev, the coordinator of the Mykolaiv underground, said that the strikes were carried out on an airfield near the city of Starokostiantyniv in the Khmelnytsky region of Ukraine.

The Russian Defense Ministry said that all targets in the attack were hit.

According to Lebedev, there were more than 30 arched shelters on the airfield, where the Armed Forces of Ukraine kept military aircraft and ammunition, including long-range air-to-ground missiles that Kyiv received from NATO countries to attack Crimea.

On August 26, the Russian forces conducted one of the largest missile attacks since the beginning of the special military operation in Ukraine. Explosions were heard in Kyiv, Poltava, Vinnytsia, Kirovograd, Dnipropetrovsk and other regions. Two explosions were heard in the area of ​​the Zhulyany airport in Kyiv.

Details

The Kh-47M2 Kinzhal is a Russian hypersonic air-launched ballistic missile. It has an estimated range of 460–480 km (290–300 mi) and a reported top speed of Mach 10. It can carry either conventional or nuclear warheads and can be launched by Tu-22M3 bombers, MiG-31K interceptors, or modified Su-34 fighter-bombers. It is the first hypersonic weapon used. It has been deployed at airbases in Russia's Southern Military District and Western Military District.