Russia has transferred the maximum number of strategic bombers capable of carrying nuclear weapons to the border with Norway and Finland since the beginning of the war against Ukraine.
The Norwegian newspaper The Barents Observer writes that the bombers are based at the "Olenya" air base in the Murmansk region. On the satellite image from May 7, two Tu-160s and Tu-22s, 14 Tu-95s, three An-22 (or An-12) transports, an Il-78 refueling plane, and three helicopters can be seen at the airfield.
It is from this base that Russian strategic aviation has recently been taking off for cruise missile strikes on Ukraine.
But, probably, this is not the end of the tasks of the overturned bombers. In late April, NATO put two F-35 fighter jets into the air to meet a group of seven Russian jets, including two Tu-160s, flying in international airspace north of the Norwegian region of Finnmark.
A significant number of bombers appeared at the base in October — at that time, Norwegian analysts linked this transfer to exercises of the nuclear strategic forces "Grim" and threats of the Russian leadership with Western nuclear weapons.
After Finlandʼs accession to NATO, the Russian authorities began to talk about "encroachment on Russiaʼs security" and the need for "countermeasures". This factor also influenced the strengthening of the aviation group at the "Olenya" base.
- In December 2022, drones attacked two permanent strategic aviation airfields in central Russia — Engels in the Saratov region and Diaghilev near Ryazan. The Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation blamed Ukraine for the attacks and confirmed the damage to two military aircraft and the death of three servicemen. Ukraine has not officially recognized this. After the attacks, the Russian Federation moved strategic aircraft away from the border with Ukraine.