Ukraine says it hit airfield in Russia's North Caucasus, 280 miles behind front line

PHOTO CAPTION: Illustrative photo — A Ukrainian drone, which can reportedly fly up to 3100 kilometers, in flight in an undisclosed location, Sept. 2022. AeroDrone/Handout via REUTERS

KYIV (Reuters) - The Ukrainian military said on Thursday it had struck an ammunition depot overnight at an airfield in Russia's Adygeya region in the North Caucasus, about 450 km (280 miles) from the frontline in eastern Ukraine.

The military was still assessing the damage caused after a fire broke out at the facility, it said in a statement.

Some 57 Russian combat and training aircraft and helicopters, including Su-34s, Su-35s and Mi-8s, were stationed at Khanskaya airfield during the drone attack, a source in Ukraine’s state security service (SBU) told Reuters.

"Russia is using this airfield in Krasnodar Krai ... for refueling and missile and bomb attacks on the units of the Defence Forces and Ukrainian settlements," the source said.

Adygeya regional head Murat Kumpilov said on Telegram that the village of Rodnikovy had been evacuated due to the fire that followed the drone attack. He said there were no casualties in the attack.

Ukraine's military also said it struck late on Wednesday a base in Russia's southern Krasnodar region where Shahed drones are stored. The previous night it hit a Russian weapons arsenal in Bryansk region that borders northern Ukraine.

Its forces have been relying on long-range drones to strike military targets deep inside Russia in attempts to curb Moscow's ability to launch air attacks more than 2-1/2 years into the full-scale invasion.

In recent months, Kyiv has also stepped up its push for allies to lift restrictions on using their weapons for long-range attacks on military targets inside Russia.



(Reporting by Anastasiia Malenko and Tom Balmforth; Editing by Alison Williams and Gareth Jones)