Russia Converts Kerch Airport in Occupied Crimea Into Drone Launch Hub

The Kerch airport, situated in eastern Crimea under temporary Russian occupation, was officially redesignated from civil aviation to military status in March 2025. This change is documented in Russia’s State Real Estate Registry and corroborated by recent satellite imagery analyzed by the investigative program Skhemy, Radio Svoboda reported on June 12.

High-resolution satellite photos, alongside comparison images provided by the Estonian outlet Delfi, reveal extensive construction of fortifications and camouflage shelters around the main runway. These installations suggest preparations for unmanned aerial vehicle operations directly from the airfield.

“Probably this is a technical base for the assembly, storage, and launch of UAVs,” said aviation expert Anatoliy Khrapchynski. “The camouflage structures, roughly 12 by 9 meters, are ideally sized to house drone‐assembly equipment and air-defense systems, enabling a layered defense of the facility.”

According to the source the newly erected shelters are suitable not only for suicide drone staging but also for integrating radar-guided air defense units, thereby protecting the launch area from Ukrainian counterstrikes.

Registry data indicate that on March 4, 2025, the occupying authorities transferred several land parcels encompassing the airport to indefinite use by the Russian Ministry of Defense’s Crimean Territorial Property Management Directorate. Prior to this, the runway—last used for scheduled passenger flights in 2007—remained underutilized despite unsuccessful attempts by local officials to sell the site.

Military analysts believe this conversion aligns with Russia’s strategic expansion of its UAV launch infrastructure. Since early June, the Ukrainian Air Force has recorded strikes involving up to 500 drones in a single operation, underscoring the Kremlin’s need for additional launch points closer to the front line.

Earlier, agents of the Atesh resistance movement blew up railway tracks near Sevastopol just before a military train carrying ammunition was due, sending shockwaves through the occupiers’ logistics network and halting rail traffic for hours, with restoration expected to take days and disrupt mortar and missile resupplies to frontline units, sparking concerns over future Russian drone operations from Crimea.

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