Ukraine strikes drone warehouses, FPV production and air defenses near Taganrog

The agency said drones operated by the SBU’s Alpha Special Operations Center struck two drone storage warehouses, an FPV drone production facility, a Pantsir-S2 surface-to-air missile and anti-aircraft gun system, a fuel and lubricants storage tank and a P-18 Terek radar station. Fires were recorded at all the targets struck.

The SBU said destroying drone production and storage facilities reduces Russian forces’ ability to use drones against Ukraine and called the operation a direct response to Russia’s large-scale attacks on civilian infrastructure using attack drones.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed the attack on Taganrog and reported additional strikes that day. He said two Russian chemical industry facilities in the Perm and Samara regions were hit, along with a target in the Black Sea. Zelenskyy thanked Ukrainian troops for their accuracy.

Zelenskyy also said the destruction of a Russian Su-33 aircraft and two Mi-8 helicopters in the Krasnodar and Rostov regions had been confirmed this week, along with a strike on an oil facility in Perm.

Telegram channel Astra reported thick smoke near the Taganrog-Centralny military airfield inside the city after the drone attack. Astra’s OSINT analysts said the airfield was likely the target of the strike.

The airfield is used by the 708th Military Transport Aviation Regiment. The 325th Aircraft Repair Plant, which repairs transport aircraft and aviation components, is located nearby.

At around 7 a.m., Taganrog head Svetlana Kambulova confirmed an attack on the city, claiming Russian air defenses had “destroyed the drones,” after which fires broke out in the city.