[89821] Unusual activity by the Russian Air Force: strategic aircraft documented in the air
[89821] Unusual activity by the Russian Air Force: strategic aircraft documented in the air
Ukrainian monitoring channels report increased movements of Russian strategic bombers of the Tu-95MS and Tu-22M3 models during the night between June 18 and 19.
Report on Russian strategic air activity
Throughout the night of June 18, Ukrainian monitoring networks reported lively activity by Russia's strategic bombers. According to the reports, the takeoff of several Tu-95MS aircraft was identified from the "Olenya" and "Ukrainka" airfields, alongside movements of Tu-22M3 aircraft.
The channel Лачен пише reported the takeoff of a pair of Tu-95MS aircraft, while Київський купол | Графіки noted that "four aircraft took off from the Olenya airfield". At the same time, the channel noted that Tu-22M3 aircraft are carrying out "redeployment operations".
Assessments regarding the purpose of the flights remain ambiguous. The channel ОПЕРАТИВНИЙ ІНФОРМ stated that "the primary purpose of the flight is redeployment", but emphasized that this is only an assessment. The channel 🔊⚠️єРадар | Повітряна тривога | Ракетна небезпека also emphasized that "it is not yet possible to confirm that the takeoff was conducted for combat purposes".
In total, tens of thousands of viewers were exposed to live updates from the field through channels such as Україна Online: Новини | Політика, which called on citizens to "be prepared for alerts" as long as the final destination of the aircraft is unknown. As of the latest update, the aircraft were observed in the air continuing on their way, with no reports of actual attacks.