Ukraine strikes Roscosmos space center and Russian airbase with Flamingo missiles

Strikes on Roscosmos Progress center

Ukrainian forces struck the Progress center, a key facility of Russia's Roscosmos space agency in the Samara region, on the night of August 14-15. President Volodimir Zelenski confirmed the attack on August 15, stating that the facility was involved in the production of electronic components for Russia's aerospace and missile industry. The strike was carried out using FP-5 Flamingo missiles developed by Ukrainian military technology company Fire Point, which confirmed its involvement. Zelenski described the operation as a good achievement given the distance involved.

A good achievement. The distance from our border is approximately 900 kilometers.

The governor of the Samara region, Viaceslav Fedorișcev, confirmed that missiles had hit an "industrial facility" in the region without specifying the exact location. Some monitoring sources placed Samara at approximately 800 kilometers from the Ukrainian border, while Zelenski cited a distance of about 900 kilometers.

Savasleyka airbase targeted

In the same wave of strikes, Ukrainian forces attacked the Savasleyka airbase in the Nizhny Novgorod region, where Russian MiG-31 fighter jets capable of launching Kinzhal missiles are stationed. Fires were observed near the base following explosions, according to the monitoring channel Exilenova Plus, cited by The Kyiv Independent. Zelenski stated the base was approximately 700 kilometers from Ukraine, while monitoring channels cited a distance of about 660 kilometers.

Our long-range sanctions have also reached the Savasleyka airbase, where the carrier aircraft of the Russian missiles that strike our cities and villages are stationed.

The extent of damage at both the Progress center and the airbase was not detailed by Ukrainian officials, and Moscow had not independently confirmed Zelenski's claims as of August 15.

Ust-Luga oil port and other strikes

Ukraine's General Staff confirmed that on the night of August 13-14, Ukrainian forces struck the port of Ust-Luga in the Leningrad region, one of Russia's most important oil ports on the Baltic Sea. Two processing facilities were damaged and a fire broke out. Zelenski said the targeted oil facility was located more than 800 kilometers from the Ukrainian border. Additionally, the General Staff reported that the Gazprom Neftekhim Salavat refinery complex in the Republic of Bashkortostan was struck on the night of August 13.

Russian claims and context

Russia's Defense Ministry claimed that air defense systems shot down 598 fixed-wing Ukrainian drones overnight, intercepted across 19 Russian regions and Crimea. One report cited over 600 drones and Flamingo missiles used in the operation. The monitoring channel Supernova Plus claimed that a Russian Oreshnik ballistic missile had struck an important aerospace design and production unit, though this could not be independently verified.

Russia's Defense Ministry also claimed that Russian troops had taken control of 19 settlements in the Dnipropetrovsk and Zaporizhzhia regions during the summer, without naming the specific localities. Previous Russian ballistic missile attacks on August 8 killed four people including a three-year-old child in Kyiv, and an attack on August 5 killed 17 people.

Zelenski framed the long-range strikes as part of a deliberate strategy to degrade Russia's military capacity.

Our long-range sanctions plan against Russia for this war is being implemented and it is important that Russia's war potential be reduced.