Ukraine’s Flamingo missiles hit key Russian rocket plant in Volgograd, Zelensky confirms

The attack

In the early hours of June 27, five FP-5 Flamingo missiles struck the Titan-Barrikady facility in Volgograd’s Krasnooktyabrsky district. Video posted by Denis Shtilerman, founder of the missile’s manufacturer, showed the launches, and Ukrainian monitoring channels published footage of explosions and fires. Local residents reported a series of blasts around 4 a.m. The Russian aviation authority Rosaviatsiya had temporarily closed Volgograd’s airport the day before.

Zelensky confirms, frames as sanctions

President Zelensky wrote on social media that “yesterday night FP-5 Flamingo missiles successfully hit Titan-Barrikady in Volgograd.” He described the plant as a large industrial complex producing artillery systems and rocket-launcher components used against Ukraine. “A hit was recorded, followed by a fire at the plant,” he added, stressing that every Russian defense facility working for the war is a legitimate target of Ukraine’s long-range sanctions. “The range of our long-term sanctions is constantly expanding. This is our daily pressure that lays the groundwork for the final establishment of a dignified peace,” he stated.

What Titan-Barrikady produces

Titan-Barrikady is part of the Roscosmos state corporation and runs a full production cycle from design to final product. According to Ukraine’s Main Intelligence Directorate, the plant builds ground-based launchers and sets for the Yars, Topol-M, and Sarmat strategic missile systems, as well as self-propelled launchers for the Iskander operational-tactical system. It is considered one of Russia’s most classified defense enterprises. The facility thus supplies critical components for the arsenal Moscow uses to strike Ukrainian cities.

Broader campaign of long-range strikes

The Volgograd attack sits inside a sharp escalation in Ukraine’s deep-strike campaign. On June 25, Zelensky approved a 40-day “influence operation” aimed at forcing Russia to end the war. The same day, Ukrainian drones struck a fuel base in Krasnodar Krai (about 300 km from the front) and two refineries in Ufa (about 1500 km from the front line). Earlier, on June 10, Flamingo missiles were used against a defense plant in Cheboksary, some 900 km from the border. The Associated Press termed the latest wave among the largest attacks on Russian regions and occupied Crimea since the start of the full-scale invasion in 2022.

Russian defenses and counterstrikes

Russia’s defense ministry said 660 Ukrainian drones were intercepted over 12 regions overnight, including Crimea and the Black Sea. Meanwhile, Russian forces attacked Ukraine with 129 drones on Friday evening; Ukraine’s Air Force reported shooting down 113 of them. Two people were killed and over twenty injured in Dnipropetrovsk and Sumy regions. The occupied Crimean peninsula remained under a state of emergency with fuel and electricity shortages, and a 2,500-vehicle queue at the Kerch bridge on Friday (reduced to 1,000 by evening).

Aftermath and casualties

Volgograd governor Andrey Bocharov acknowledged damage to production facilities, saying ten people were injured and taken to hospital, with no immediate threat to life. He said fires were quickly extinguished. Shtilerman, in his social media post, wrote: “Volgograd welcomes the seasonal migration of flamingos from Ukraine. To be continued.”