Russian forces are actively developing a new military facility designed for storing and launching Shahed kamikaze drones near the Ukrainian border. The underground partisan movement Atesh reported the discovery of the construction site in the city of Oryol, located in western Russia.
According to intelligence gathered by partisan agents operating within the Russian Federation, the military leadership is transforming the site into a major hub for its continuous aerial attacks on Ukraine. The resistance network publicly shared the precise coordinates of the target (53.371473, 35.802940), indicating a significant security breach for the Russian military infrastructure. While the Oryol region does not directly border Ukraine, its proximity makes it an ideal logistical staging ground for reducing drone flight times to northern and central Ukrainian cities.
Reconnaissance missions conducted by Atesh operatives revealed a noticeable escalation in activity at the location. The Russian military is currently building solid concrete warehouses, which are specifically designed for the secure storage, assembly, and pre-flight preparation of Shahed strike unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). Partisans note that the movement of military personnel and transport vehicles at the facility does not stop, and construction work continues at a rapid pace. This directly points to the modernization and significant expansion of the enemy’s attack infrastructure to shield their valuable drone stockpiles from preemptive strikes.
The establishment of a new, heavily fortified launch site demonstrates Moscow’s intention to maintain and potentially intensify its systematic drone terrorism against Ukrainian civilian infrastructure and energy grids. However, the Ukrainian Defense Forces have a proven track record of neutralizing such threats before the drones can be deployed.
Earlier this spring, the Ukrainian military successfully obliterated a major Shahed storage facility near temporarily occupied Donetsk. That high-precision strike was executed utilizing Western-supplied ATACMS and SCALP missile systems, dealing a severe blow to local Russian logistics. Furthermore, Ukrainian military intelligence (HUR) previously confirmed a massive fire at a separate Russian warehouse containing critical components for Shahed drones. That incident alone resulted in an estimated $16 million loss for the Russian defense sector.
The ongoing efforts by partisan groups like Atesh play a crucial role in identifying new logistical hubs, providing the Ukrainian Armed Forces with actionable intelligence to degrade Russia’s aerial strike capabilities directly at their source.