Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU) says it used long-range drones to destroy a Russian Su-27 fighter at the Belbek military airfield in Russian-occupied Crimea and damaged another.
According to the SBU, the operation was conducted by the Special Operations Center “A.” One Russian fighter, fully armed, was on the runway preparing for a combat sortie when Ukrainian drones destroyed it, the SBU said. A second Su-27 was damaged. The extent of the strike is being clarified.
Drones also targeted the control tower during the operation. It is not yet clear what damage it sustained. If it was put out of service, Russian forces would face difficulties conducting flights from Belbek airfield.
Russian forces actively use the Belbek air base in Crimea to carry out airstrikes on Ukraine and to support their troops in the war against Ukraine. As a result, Ukraine’s military regularly targets the facility. For example, Ukrainian drones struck the base on December 18, completely destroying a MiG-31 interceptor and radar assets of S-400 Triumf and Pantsir-S2 air defense systems. The destroyed Russian equipment is valued at hundreds of millions of dollars. The two Su-27 fighters recently hit by SBU drones together are worth about $70 million.
In 2025, President Volodymyr Zelensky significantly expanded the SBU’s authorities and social protections for its personnel, making the agency more effective against enemies of Ukraine, according to officials. The service’s wartime strength is now set at 41,000 personnel, including 10,000 in the Special Operations Center “A.”
Earlier, it was reported that the SBU for the first time struck with drones a tanker from Russia’s “shadow fleet” in the Mediterranean Sea.
