A series of bomber protection structures appeared at a Russian strategic base

Commercial satellite photos taken last week and analyzed by the US military website War Zone on June 22 show at least 17 hangars built in the northeast corner of Engels-2 air base in Russia’s Saratov province. These structures are much larger than fighter hangars, consistent with the huge size of the Tu-95MS and Tu-160 strategic bombers.

“Large-scale construction activities are taking place at Engels-2, one of Russia’s most important air bases, marking a significant change after decades of the country placing high-value aircraft on the runway without protective measures,” commented War Zone editor Thomas Newdick.

Engels-2 is home to the 121st Guards Heavy Bomber Regiment, the only unit operating the Tu-160 series, and the 184th Heavy Bomber Regiment equipped with Tu-95MS aircraft. This facility has been repeatedly attacked by Ukraine with unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), but has not suffered any damage.

Russia and the US have often parked bombers in exposed areas under the terms of the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START), which requires both sides to position strategic aircraft in clearly visible positions. Russian bombers listed in the New START treaty include the Tu-95MS and Tu-160, while the US’s are the B-52G/H, B-1B and B-2.

Russian officials on February 4 announced the termination of all obligations under the New START treaty, leaving both sides free to decide the next step. The decision was announced a day before the treaty expired and US President Donald Trump refused to extend the agreement.

The large hangars appear to have started construction in April 2025, a month after Ukrainian UAVs attacked Engels-2 with the main target believed to be the weapons depot, and about two months before Ukraine raided a series of strategic Russian air bases with drones in Operation Spider Web.

According to Newdick, the attacks on the Engels-2 base showed that Ukrainian UAVs have the ability to penetrate deep into enemy territory, while the Russian air defense network cannot cover the entire vast territory and prevent all approaches to the target.

Meanwhile, the Spider Web campaign poses another difficult problem when a large number of first-person drones can originate from very close positions to attack a series of strategic Russian air bases.

“Building a permanent hangar for bombers marks a significant change in the operation of these aircraft. Previously, Russian bombers were almost unprotected when parked at the base, and maintenance was also carried out outdoors,” Newdick said.

The specific level of protection of these structures is unknown. The most solid tactical hangars today often use steel frames to support precast concrete panels, which can handle many types of UAVs and submunitions of cluster munitions.

“These structures provide a certain level of protection, as well as shielding the activities and presence of bombers, making it more difficult for the enemy to target,” Newdick assessed.

Building a large fortified hangar is Russia’s latest measure to protect its precious strategic bomber fleet, of which the Tu-95MS and Tu-22M3 models have long been discontinued, while the Tu-160M ​​mass production line has just begun operating again.

“After the conflict broke out, the Russian air force dispersed aircraft to protect them, although this is not easy for strategic bombers, which require a lot of space, maintenance infrastructure, weapons depots and other factors. One of the runways of the Engels-2 base has been used as an aircraft parking space in recent years,” Newdick said.

Russia also installed walls between operating aircraft to limit damage when an aircraft is attacked, preventing fire and flying debris from damaging other aircraft. This country also covers tires on aircraft parked outdoors and paints aircraft images on the ground to deceive enemy drones, combined with eliminated aircraft used as decoys.

These plans were initially criticized as ineffective, but later some American experts said they still worked in practice.

Not only Russia, the US military also faces the need to protect its forces against increasing threats from missiles, UAVs and first-person drones.

The results of satellite image analysis are Washington Post Announced in early May showed that a total of 217 structures and 11 pieces of military equipment were destroyed or damaged at 15 bases housing US forces during 6 weeks of war with Iran. Among these are vital assets such as the E-3G Sentry “magic eye aircraft” and a series of KC-135 tanker aircraft, all of which were hit while lying in an empty parking lot at a garrison base in the Middle East.

US media also mentioned threats to a series of military facilities in the country, including the drone invasion of Barksdale Air Force Base in northwest Louisiana, where many B-52 strategic bomber squadrons are stationed.