Putin blunder as Russia drops bomb near own airfield storing nuclear bomber strike jets | World | News
Russia is believed to have accidentally bombed a village near its own airfield where its nuclear bomber attack planes were based. The incident reportedly occurred on October 12 in the city of Engels in the Saratov region, when a FAB-500 bomb loaded with 0.2 tons of TNT equivalent explosives detached from a fighter jet and crashed into a village less than nine miles from a high-security strategic air base. According to the Russian independent media outlet ASTRA, the bomb did not explode and there was no loss of life in the region.
The base hosts Russia’s Tu-160 Blackjack and Tu-95MS Bear strategic bombers. Nuclear warheads for Kh-55/Kh-102 air-launched cruise missiles are also reportedly stored. The plane was likely about to bomb Ukraine as it took off from Engels-2 air base, Vladimir Putin’s key center for strategic aviation.
“Due to flaws in the system, bombs do not always reach their targets and fall on Russian territory,” ASTRA said.
According to the publication, since the beginning of this year there have been at least 126 cases of “accidental” launches of aircraft bombs and three missiles into Russian territory or Putin-occupied Ukraine. There were 165 such cases in 2024.
The bombers deployed here are considered to be of critical importance in the event of a nuclear World War III. Ukraine has previously carried out drone attacks on the Engels-2 air base and its fuel storage facilities, dating back to the Soviet era.
Dmytro Zhmailo, director general of the Ukrainian Center for Security and Cooperation, told the Telegraph that destroying military facilities at Engels had always been a priority for Ukraine to weaken Russia’s war-making ability and blunt its crippling aerial bombardment.
In March, videos verified by Reuters showed a thick cloud of smoke and intense fire near the base in Engels. The damage was caused by 132 Ukrainian drones, which set an airport on fire, devastating nearby huts and forcing residents to evacuate.
