UK intelligence assesses impact of Ukraine's most successful strike on Russia in 2025
Photo: The strike on the Engels airbase was the most successful in 2025 (Getty Images)
The strike on the military base in Engels has been the most successful of 2025. Russia will not be able to use the airbase for missile strikes against Ukraine for some time, the UK Ministry of Defense informs.
According to the report, on the night of March 19–20, the Armed Forces of Ukraine struck an ammunition storage area located at the Russian Strategic Aviation airbase Engels-2 using a UAV. The base is located 600 km from the border and is used for attacks on Ukraine.
According to UK intelligence, a large number of aerial munitions used against Ukraine were in the impact zone, causing significant damage.
"The substantial loss will likely disrupt strike operations from the airfield in the short term, forcing Russia to improve its defensive posture and replenish munitions stocks," the report states.
Russian aircraft were likely relocated to nearby airfields, which has become a standard practice in response to Ukrainian deep strike operations.
"This strike is Ukraine's most successful targeting of a Russian munitions depot in 2025 and continues the pattern of regular Ukrainian UAV strikes deep into Russian territory. It also highlights the continuing struggles that stretched Russian air defense face in protecting its strategic military sites," the UK Ministry of Defense noted.
As previously reported, on the night of March 20, the Ukrainian Armed Forces struck an ammunition depot at the Engels-2 airbase in the Saratov region. Satellite images from the American aerospace company Maxar, taken on March 21, show the damage.
Crater marks from explosions are visible where some buildings once stood. These depots housed containers for Kh-101/Kh-555 missiles, which Russia uses to attack Ukraine from Tu-160 and Tu-95 aircraft.
