Mass explosions hit three Russian cities with airfields: Morozovsk, Yeysk, and Engels
Photo: In Russia, massive explosions occurred in three cities with airfields (Russian media)
Russia complained about a massive drone attack. The enemy counted more than fifty drones and traditionally blamed Ukraine. The peculiarity of this attack was that among the attacked cities were three that host airfields used by Russia in the war against Ukraine.
Sources used: Russian Ministry of Defense, Shot Telegram channel, Russian regional media, Twitter account of OSINT researcher MT Anderson, and other open source data.
As reported by the Russian Ministry of Defense, that night their air defense system allegedly shot down 53 drones in the following regions:
- 44 over the Rostov region
- 6 over the Krasnodar region
- 1 over the Saratov region
- 1 over the Kursk region
- 1 over the Belgorod region - 1.
At the same time, in three cities, in the above-mentioned Russian regions, explosions were heard exactly where airfields are located. Namely: Morozovsk in the Rostov region, Yeysk in the Krasnodar region, and Engels in the Saratov region.
Morozovsk
For example, in the Rostov region, according to Russian public media, a military airfield in Morozovsk came under attack. The regional authorities did not confirm this. However, they reported that a plane hit the substation and caused a power outage.
This city, located at a distance of about 300 km from Ukraine, was the first to come under attack at night. Eyewitnesses counted more than 60 explosions. It is worth noting that there is a military airfield near Morozovsk where the Russian 559th Guards Bomber Regiment is based.
OSINT researcher MT Anderson reported that on April 4, 24 Su-34 fighters and three Su-35 aircraft were deployed at the Morozovsk airbase, launching bombs at Ukraine.
Photo: Russian aircraft at the Morozovsk airfield on April 4 (twitter.com/MT_Anderson)
According to open sources, Su-24 and Su-24M frontline bombers are also based at this airfield.
Yeysk
The city of Yeysk, Krasnodar Krai, which is located 150 kilometers from Ukraine, was hit around 3 a.m.. At least 10 explosions were reported there. Local Telegram channels reported that Russian air defense was allegedly working over the city.
In addition to the loud explosions, the sound of machine gun fire was also heard in Yeysk near the local airfield and military camp. In the western part of the city, there is a large airfield of the Russian Navy, where the 959th bomber regiment, which is part of the 1st Guards Mixed Aviation Division, is stationed. The regiment is armed with Su-24 frontline bombers.
Back in October 2022, analysts showed that the airfield is intensively used by the Russian military and, due to its proximity to Ukraine (located 150 kilometers from the line of contact in the Zaporizhzhia direction), serves as a forward air base for the occupiers - in the first year of Russia's full-scale war, there were 10 Su-34s, at least 7 Su-25s, two Il-38s, An-26s, Su-30SMs, Tu-134UBLs, An-72s, and one Be-200ChS.
The airfield in Yeysk is used for combat missions by tactical aviation units of the 4th Army of the Russian Air Force. Aircraft from this airfield bombed Mariupol.
Engels
In the Saratov region, there were reports of explosions in Engels (about 700 km from Ukraine), where a strategic bomber base is located. Local authorities claim that "there were no hits". Eyewitnesses claim that at around 5 a.m. they heard the sound of shooting, followed by a powerful explosion. After that, the siren went off.
This is the main bomber base and the only place in Russia where Tu-160 strategic bombers are based. The airbase, officially called Engels-2, is home to the 121st Guards Sevastopol and 184th Heavy Bomber Aviation Regiments, which are armed with Tu-160 and Tu-95MS strategic bombers, respectively.
Since the beginning of the Russian full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Engels-2 has become one of the Russian airfields used to launch missile strikes on the territory of Ukraine.
Also, since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, combat drones have been regularly arriving at Russian airfields. The Russian Ministry of Defense, in turn, blames Ukraine for this, and although Kyiv does not officially comment on such reports, the Ukrainian military and political leadership has repeatedly explained that the destruction of the missile and bomb carriers themselves is an effective way to combat Russian aerial terror, which the enemy has intensified recently.
Therefore, sometimes the Ukrainian Defense Forces manage to shoot down Russian drones, and sometimes they strike at Russian airfields located both in the occupied territory and in Russia. RBC-Ukraine wrote about this in detail in the report "Platforms for attacks: How Russia uses airfields for war and Ukraine's countering options".
