Russian cruise missile manufacturing faces setbacks due to Western sanctions - British intelligence
Russia is encountering difficulties in producing their Kh-101 cruise missiles due to Western sanctions and the urgent need for rapid armament, the UK’s Defense Ministry reported on April 9.
The MoD came to this conclusion after analyzing satellite imagery from March 31, showing debris from a missile falling on a field in Russia’s Saratov Oblast.
Initially thought to be from a Ukrainian drone, closer inspection revealed the debris came from a Russian Kh-101 cruise missile.
The missile likely malfunctioned and mistakenly landed in Russia after being launched at Ukraine that same morning.
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Saratov Oblast is known for being the home of the Engels airfield, where many of the strategic bombers, frequently used for missile strikes on Ukraine, are based.
The Kh-101 missile is Russia's primary high-precision guided munition, with a flight range of approximately 4,000 kilometers. Russia frequently employs it for strikes against Ukraine, particularly targeting energy infrastructure.
Russia launched a mass strike against Ukraine on the night of March 31, targeting Ukraine’s power grid. Air defense systems intercepted 18 targets, including nine Kh-101/Kh-555 cruise missiles and nine Shahed-136/131 drones on that day.
Read also: Russia fires 8,000 missiles at Ukraine over two years – Ukrainian Air Force
An external surveillance camera captured an explosion in the sky above the Krasnoarmeyskyi district of Saratov Oblast the same day. Residents initially reported air defense activity on social media and later claimed that the air defense forces had downed a drone.
Photos of the debris later appeared online. Analysis of those photos revealed that the debris was similar to the tail section of a Kh-101 cruise missile, which Ukrainian air defense had previously downed on multiple occasions.
Russia has not officially commented on the incident.
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