Russian air defense overload: expert on Neptune's strike on ammo depot in Russia's Rostov region

He shared the information on Espreso TV.

"Regarding the use of the Neptune, the source is Ukrinform, which, citing its own sources within the SBU, has already reported details of this operation. During the operation, at least one Neptune missile and a number of drones were deployed, launched by SBU operatives. It was a classic operation called 'overloading Russian air defense,' designed to make them expend their ammunition on relatively inexpensive drones. Then, through the 'window' created, the Neptune missile would strike targets located in the suburbs of Rostov-on-Don, which is an important industrial, logistical, and military hub," noted the editor-in-chief.

According to him, by all logic, there should be powerful Russian air defense systems in the Rostov-on-Don area. It should be noted that for this attack, the Neptune missile had to travel over 170 km in a straight line from the front line, though the actual route was much more complex. This means that the Neptune first had to overcome Russia's frontline air defenses, then the rear defenses, and finally those near the target close to Rostov-on-Don.

"Despite all this, Neptune accomplished its mission — the Russian military facility was hit. Regarding the plant known as ('Plastfactor' - ed.), it was not the specific target, as Russian opposition sources claim, but the fact is that next to the plant's territory there is a motor transport enterprise. The key point is that, as was known since 2022 and reported by the partisan movement Atesh, the enemy (Russia - ed.) actively uses civilian vehicles to transport ammunition and weapons to the front. In other words, they use civilian trucks with civilian drivers, who thereby become legitimate military targets. Apparently, this enterprise stored, as noted in Ukrinform’s report, ammunition and reconnaissance UAVs. A successful strike was carried out there with the Ukrainian Neptune missile in coordination with other drones," the military expert commented.

Oleh Katkov concluded that this operation executed a high-quality combined strike on a Russian military facility. Such strikes are not unprecedented, and one can recall that in October 2024, a Neptune missile destroyed a warehouse of Shaheds near Yeysk in the Krasnodar region, which were also stored in the middle of a village.

• On the night of January 10, a Neptune missile and drones operated by Ukraine's Security Service targeted a Russian ammo depot in the Rostov region.