A powerful air attack on the Russian Engels in the early hours of March 20 could have resulted in the destruction of a cruise missile depot that Russia uses to strike Ukraine.
Points of attention
- An analysis suggests that a recent air attack on Engels may have destroyed a warehouse storing Kh-555 and Kh-101 cruise missiles used by Russia to strike Ukraine.
- The secondary detonation damaged buildings near Engels air base, indicating a potential loss of strategic aviation ammunition.
- Images and videos captured from the scene show a massive explosion at the depot believed to house Kh-101 and Kh-555 cruise missiles, confirming the impact of the attack.
A warehouse with aircraft missiles could have been hit in Engels
A powerful secondary detonation that occurred 4 hours after the Ukrainian attack damaged dozens of buildings located near Engels Air Base, which directly indicates what could have exploded, Defense Express analysts believe.
An ammunition depot detonated near the Engels strategic aviation airbase near Saratov, where Tu-95MS and Tu-160 are based. Judging by the video from the scene with a powerful secondary detonation and the nature of the airbase itself, it is believed to be a depot where Kh-101 and Kh-555 cruise missiles were stored.
In particular, there are already photos and videos of a huge "mushroom" from the explosion, which occurred today around 7 a.m. The very fact of the detonation is confirmed by local authorities, who previously reported a massive attack by Ukrainian long-range drones at around 3 a.m., of which 54 were allegedly shot down over the Saratov region.
The ammunition warehouses of the Engels-2 airbase in Saratov, Russia, have been struck. The secondary explosion was extremely powerful and devastated neighborhoods hundreds of meters from the base. A huge smoke plume is over the base.
— (((Tendar))) (@Tendar) March 20, 2025
The base is home of Russia‘s strategic… pic.twitter.com/L3jrONUIVa
That is, everything currently indicates that the detonation occurred at a warehouse of aviation ammunition for strategic aviation. Considering that the strategic bombers Tu-95MS and Tu-160 from the 121st and 184th heavy bomber aviation regiments of the Russian Aerospace Forces are based at Engels, we are talking about cruise missiles of the Kh-101 and Kh-555 types.
Against the background of the first official announcement of the use of the "Long Neptune" with a flight range of up to 1,000 km, it is quite possible that it was precisely such a weapon with a full-fledged warhead weighing hundreds, not tens of kilograms, that was needed for such an effective attack.
This is also stated by the head of the Center for Countering Disinformation at the National Security and Defense Council, Andriy Kovalenko.
At Engels, the Russians lost missiles, including the Kh-101, as a result of the strike. The number will be clear later.
Andriy Kovalenko
Head of the Central Development Center
According to Kovalenko, at the Engels airfield, Russian troops store the largest number of missiles used by strategic aviation to strike Ukraine.
The Kh-101 missile is a high-precision, long-range air-to-surface cruise missile. It is carried by Tu-95 strategic bombers. The main purpose of the Kh-101 is to destroy important targets at long distances, in particular strategic enemy facilities.
Russia uses these missiles for long-range strikes on Ukraine during massive attacks.
