Ukraine launched an attack on a key Russian airbase housing nuclear-capable bombers early Thursday, Russian media reports, resulting in a massive mushroom cloud visible for miles.
The drone strike targeted the Engels airbase, a Soviet-era facility home to Russia’s Tupolev Tu-160 nuclear-capable heavy bombers, also known as “White Swans.”
Verified footage captured a large explosion spreading from the airfield, causing nearby cottages to collapse. Additional videos showed a towering mushroom cloud rising over the damaged buildings, with local officials confirming that at least 10 people were injured.
Ukraine’s defense ministry confirmed that its forces targeted the airfield, causing secondary explosions of ammunition.
Meanwhile, Russia’s defense ministry claimed its air defenses downed 132 Ukrainian drones over Russian territory on Thursday.
The drone strike occurred just a day after Russian President Vladimir Putin rejected the unconditional 30-day ceasefire that Washington and Kyiv had agreed to the previous week.
On Tuesday, Putin rejected President Trump’s proposal for a full, unconditional ceasefire with Ukraine but agreed to suspend attacks on “energy and infrastructure,” which the Ukrainian military has recently targeted successfully.
The following day, Trump held a nearly hour-long conversation with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, stating it was intended to “align both Russia and Ukraine in terms of their requests and needs.”
Ukraine has previously targeted the Soviet-era airbase.
Plumes of smoke billow from a strike in Kropyvnytskyi, as Russia continues its attack on Ukraine.
Ukraine has previously targeted the Engels airbase, first hitting it in December 2022.
In January, the Ukrainian military claimed responsibility for a drone strike on an oil depot supplying the key base, igniting a fire that took five days to put out.
