The new Ukrainian bomber drone may have been involved in intensifying attacks on the oil industry of Russia. On the evening of January 29 or the morning of January 30, drones from the 14th Separate Ukrainian Drone Regiment struck a pumping station on the Druzhba oil pipeline in the Bryansk region. Reports TSN. This information comes from Kontrakty.UA.
This is mentioned in an article by Forbes.
Following the attack on the pumping station of the Druzhba pipeline, a fire broke out that illuminated the night sky so brightly that it was detected by NASA satellites.
"Given the fire, the strike was precise," noted an Estonian analyst from WarTranslated.
The publication states that Ukrainians have been targeting the Russian oil industry for two years. However, in almost all attacks, drones equipped with explosives simply crashed into their targets for effectiveness. In contrast, on the night of January 30, the drones "bombed the Bryansk Republic with bombs," as reported by the Telegram channel "Nikolaevsky Vanek."
Ukraine is already utilizing former civilian sports aircraft, modified for remote control, capable of carrying bombs weighing up to 100 kilograms "under their belly." It seems that until now, drones have merely crashed into their targets instead of releasing bombs.
This approach makes sense for deeper strikes. A sports aircraft like the Aeroprakt A-22 loaded with explosives may find it challenging to fly back 600 km. Yet Ukrainians are striking Russian oil infrastructure 1200 km or even further behind the front line.
Directing the A-22 aircraft on a one-way mission means they can cover 1200 km, rather than just 600 km. There is no need to drop a bomb if there are no expectations that the attacking drone will return to base.
The attack on the Druzhba pipeline on the night of January 30 was aimed at a pumping station located just 40 km from Ukraine. This indicates that the endurance of the bomber drones was not a primary concern in planning. They could drop their bombs and still retain the ability to return to base.
At the same time, the article notes that this does not imply that the drones returned to base. Remote landings are among the most challenging aspects of wartime drone operations. Instead of trying to ensure the unmanned bombers made a safe nighttime landing, their operators may have opted to drop bombs and then guide the UAV for a second round at the same target they had just bombed – an automated double strike.
If larger Ukrainian drones can drop "belly bombs," they might also be capable of executing round-trip missions – if, of course, their operators can figure out how to land the drones. In that case, this would become a reusable weapon: each UAV could hit more than one oil refinery or pumping station before completing its mission.
Recall that due to the drone attack in the Bryansk region on the night of January 30, a fire broke out at the "Novozibkov" pumping station of the Druzhba pipeline.