"We operate from Russian territory": Ukraine's intelligence chief discusses strike on Pskov airbase and downed Il-76

Kyrylo Budanov, the head of the Defense Intelligence of Ukraine (GUR), shared the information with  the War Zone project by the Drive.

"We are working from the territory of Russia," Budanov said, although he did not specify whether the attack was carried out by the GUR or Russian partisans. The intelligence officer also refused to say what kind of drones were used or how many were involved.

In assessing the damage to the aircraft, Budanov said that two were destroyed and two were seriously damaged. And the fuel on board may have caused the aircraft to completely burn down.

A screenshot from the infrared camera of one of the drones used in the attack confirms the extent of the damage.

According to GUR's source, the images suggest that the drone may have dropped bombs on the airfield, which could support Budanov's claim that the airbase was attacked from Russian territory, rather than by autonomous long-range drones.

The Il-76 is the main transport aircraft of the Russian military aviation. Budanov pointed out that the GUR is targeting them because they are operational and actively used to "transport military cargo and paratroopers."

This successful attack raises further concerns about the security of Russian forces and their capability to defend against drone operations within their domestic airbase facilities.

Background. Pskov is a Russian city situated 100 kilometers from Estonia and Latvia, and at least 700 kilometers from the Ukrainian border.

The strike on the Pskov air base

On the evening of Tuesday, August 29, explosions occurred near the airfield in Pskov, Russia: the Russian Defense Ministry remained silent about the UAV attack, while the GUR confirmed the destruction of at least four Il-76 aircraft.

During the large-scale drone attack on the night of August 29, Russian air defense failed to shoot down the drones, which destroyed several military transport IL-76s at the Pskov airfield because they were deployed to defend Moscow.

Ivan Kyrychevskyi, a military expert at Defence Express, mentioned on Espreso that Russia has deployed the majority of its air defense systems to the front line. Consequently, Ukraine finds itself in a unique position, allowing for the effective planning of routes for their drones.

On August 31, a representative of the Defense Intelligence of Ukraine, Andriy Yusov, told Espreso TV that Russian troops were using transport aircraft to move personnel and weapons. 

Also, on the night of August 31 to September 1, an unknown object was spotted in the sky over Pskov,  Russian air defense was allegedly operating.