An Israeli intelligence firm has detected an “irregular presence” of nuclear-capable Russian strategic bombers near Finland.
ImageSat International detected four Tu-160 “Blackjacks” on Aug. 21, joined by three Tu-95 “Bears,” the Russian equivalent of the B-52, by Sept. 25, according to the Jerusalem Post. Satellite images found that there were zero strategic bombers located at the Olenya air base as late as Aug. 12, showing a major shift in the activity of the bombers. Though the report didn’t cite evidence that the planes were carrying nuclear warheads, the bombers have been used extensively during the war in Ukraine to fire cruise missiles with ballistic, rather than nuclear, warheads. Both aircraft are also capable of firing Russia’s vaunted hypersonic missile, the “Kinzhal,” which can also be equipped with a nuclear warhead.
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The firm guesses that the bombers were moved to the base from Engels air base in southwest Russia, formerly the sole air base that operated the Tu-160. The Olenya air base contains tactical and strategic nuclear weapons, according to the report.
The bombers avoid Ukrainian air defenses by firing their ordinance over Russian airspace, targeting critical infrastructure in central and western Ukraine, including “military equipment production and repair plants, strategic fuel supplies, airfields, railway facilities,” and more.
In April, Russian President Vladimir Putin awarded the operators of the Tu-160, the 121st Heavy Bomber Aviation Regiment, the honorific “guards” for “mass heroism … shown by the regiment’s personnel in combat operations,” ostensibly for their role in the War in Ukraine.
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The bombers now located at the Olenya air base have only been photographed on the ground so far, and no violations of Finnish airspace have been reported.
