After a Ukrainian drone attack, the evacuation of the bombers and the addition of tires to the remaining planes, the Engels-2 air base saw the appearance of two Tu-95 Bear strategic bombers… directly painted on its tarmac .
Engels-2
The Engels-2 air base (Saratov oblast, Russia) has become, over the course of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, a surprisingly recurring subject in this conflict. Although this base is located approximately 600 kilometers from the first Ukrainian positions, it has nevertheless become the target of a Ukrainian suicide drone attack in December 2022. The then unimaginable consequence: the Tu-95 Bear and Tu-160 Blackjack strategic bombers were redeployed from bases even further from Ukraine. There are then only a few aircraft left, probably incapable of flying to their new base for technical reasons. However, these aircraft received surprising – and very ineffective – protection: tires were placed on the wings and/or fuselage, as demonstrated in satellite images.
“Airplanes” on the ground!
These are precisely new satellite images of the air base which demonstrate that aerial activity has stopped: two “Tu-95 strategic bombers” have been painted on the ground. The idea behind this new action is not known for the moment: to lure future Ukrainian drones? Deceiving the intelligence services about the number of devices actually present?… One thing is certain: the shadow, or rather the lack of shadow, demonstrates that these paintings will never be targeted by the Ukrainian Armed Forces. The presence of a Tu-95 next to the two paintings allows us to make a comparison. By the way, unlike the real Tu-95, both paintings were not equipped with “protective tires”.
