Ukrainian Drones Hit Key Russian Air Base Housing Su-34 and Su-35 Jets in Voronezh Region

Ukrainian long-range drones struck the Borisoglebsk military air base in Russia’s Voronezh region overnight on July 8, triggering a fire at a facility used by the Russian Aerospace Forces (VKS).

According to ASTRA, videos published by local residents showed a fire at the airfield following the attack. The incident was also detected by NASA’s FIRMS fire monitoring system, which recorded a heat anomaly at the site. Russian authorities had not commented on possible damage at the time of publication.

The Borisoglebsk air base, located approximately 300 kilometers from the Ukrainian border, hosts the 783rd Aviation Training Center and elements of the 105th Mixed Aviation Division, which operates Su-34 fighter-bombers, Su-35 fighters, and Su-30SM multirole aircraft.

The base is currently used primarily as a temporary refueling and rearming location rather than a permanent operating base. Analysis of satellite imagery from recent months suggests aircraft activity there has been limited, with only intermittent appearances of fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters.

NASA’s FIRMS monitoring system detected a heat anomaly at the airfield on July 8, providing additional evidence of a fire following the reported strike. Footage circulating online and cited by ASTRA also showed smoke rising from the area.

The Borisoglebsk air base has been targeted before. In July 2025, Ukrainian forces struck the facility, with satellite imagery later indicating damage to an area believed to contain external fuel tanks, aviation equipment, and possibly Universal Gliding and Correction Modules (UMPK) used to convert conventional bombs into guided glide bombs.

Ukraine’s General Staff previously reported that the 2025 operation damaged a storage facility for guided aerial bombs, a combat trainer aircraft, and likely other aircraft stationed at the base.

The latest strike comes as Ukraine continues its campaign against Russian military aviation infrastructure. Earlier this month, Ukrainian forces also targeted the Saky and Hvardiiske air bases in temporarily occupied Crimea, while another key Russian aviation facility in the Voronezh region—the Baltimore air base, home to the 47th Bomber Aviation Regiment operating Su-34 aircraft—was attacked in May 2026.

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