Ukrainian forces struck the Akhtubinsk airfield and a drone base in Russia
On the night of November 15, the Ukrainian Defense Forces carried out strikes on the “Akhtubinsk” military airfield in Russia’s Astrakhan Oblast and a drone port near the village of Tsymbulova in the Oryol Oblast. The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported that both targets had been struck. The airfield is used for testing military aircraft, while the drone port is used for storing, preparing, and launching attack drones.
According to the General Staff, Ukrainian units attacked two military facilities on Russian territory. However, in its brief statement, the agency did not specify the exact nature of the damage or the losses sustained by the Russian military.
The Akhtubinsk airfield is located in the Astrakhan Oblast. It is home to the Russian Ministry of Defense’s 929th State Flight Test Center—one of the main facilities where new models of military aircraft and weapons are tested. The center also tests modernized aircraft, helicopters, and their weapon systems.
This airfield has already been targeted by Ukrainian forces. Specifically, on August 20, 2026, the Ukrainian Defense Forces attacked “Akhtubinsk.” At that time, the General Staff reported damage to a Russian Su-34 aircraft and a fuel spill on the facility’s grounds. The Russian military uses these aircraft to launch guided bombs against Ukraine. The second target was a drone base near Tsymbulova in the Oryol region. This is a site where the Russian military stores attack drones, prepares them for launch, and launches them into Ukrainian territory.
This is not the first attack on this site. On September 21, 2026, the Defense Forces had already struck a facility in the Tsymbulova area. At that time, according to the General Staff, at least three storage facilities for drones caught fire. A launch pad for jet-powered drones and five launchers were also damaged. Striking such targets aims to weaken the Russian army’s ability to use drones to attack Ukraine. At the same time, the results of the strikes on the night of November 15 still need to be clarified, as reported by the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine on Facebook.
On the night of November 15, the Ukrainian Defense Forces carried out strikes on two industrial facilities in Tatarstan and a military-industrial complex plant in the Bryansk region of Russia. Fires broke out at the sites of the struck facilities. Among the targets were one of Europe’s largest petrochemical complexes and a facility that manufactures aircraft, including helicopters.
On the night of November 15, Russia reported a drone attack on industrial facilities in Tatarstan and the Rostov region. In Nizhnekamsk, a fire broke out at the “Nizhnekamskneftekhim” petrochemical plant, and in Taganrog, an electrical substation was damaged.
The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported that on November 13, the Ukrainian Defense Forces struck again at one of the most critical nodes of the Russian oil system — the “Samara” linear production and dispatch station near the village of Prosvet in the Samara Region. Targets at an airfield in the Lipetsk Region were also struck. The General Staff assured that more strikes are coming!
As a reminder, on the night of November 12–13, drones attacked an industrial zone in Volgograd, Russia, where one of the Russian Federation’s largest oil refineries—Lukoil-Volgograd Oil Refinery—is located.
