Satellite images show long-range strikes destroyed a Russian aircraft that can drop glide bombs, Ukraine says

Russia’s Su-34 fighter-bombers are capable of launching glide bombs, highly destructive munitions that have been wreaking havoc on Ukrainian cities and troop positions.

Glide bombs are equipped with special kits that convert dumb bombs into precision-guided munitions. These weapons come in various sizes and are in heavy use by the Russians. Among them is a bomb weighing over 6,000 pounds that delivers tremendous destruction on impact.

The glide bombs are almost impossible to intercept because they have small radar signatures, travel on non-ballistic trajectories, and have fairly short flight times.

The only way really for Ukraine to defeat the glide bombs is to either take out the Russian warplane before it drops its payload or strike the aircraft on the ground. Kyiv appears to have done the latter in the strikes on the Morozovsk airbase.

The HUR said it also destroyed Russia’s aviation arsenal in Saturday’s strikes and that the secondary detonation of ammunition caused large areas of burned earth on and around the base, which can be seen in the satellite images.

“We must protect the lives of our people and end the war on Ukrainian terms,” Zelenskyy said Saturday.

“Every strike that accurately responds to Russia’s aerial bombs, that destroys Russian logistics and bases, that makes it more difficult for the occupier to stay on our land — every such strike brings the just end to the war closer,” he added.