Russian military transport plane burned at airfield – Ukraine’s intelligence

A Tu-134 military transport plane was burned at the Orenburg-2 military airfield in the Russian Federation on the night of October 12-13. The Soviet aircraft is utilized for various purposes, including transporting top Russian Ministry of Defense officials.

Ukraine's intelligence reported that on Telegram.

According to the intelligence, the plane belonged to the 117th Military Transport Aviation Regiment of the Russian Armed Forces and was located at the Orenburg-2 military airfield.

The scouts say the Tu-134 is used, in particular, for transporting the leadership of the Russian Ministry of Defense.

Currently, other details of the situation have not been disclosed.

For reference:

The Tu-134, developed by the Tupolev Design Bureau in the 1960s, is a famous Soviet passenger aircraft for short and medium flights. It was one of the most renowned jet planes of its time.

^{Photo: flickr.com}

The first Tu-134 modification flew in 1963, and its commercial operations began in 1967.

The plane has two engines located in the tail and can carry up to 80 passengers.

In the Russian Federation, there has been a significant rise in cases of military facility arson, including helicopters and airplanes, since Russia's invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022.

As an example, two such "incidents" took place in September alone:

• on the night of September 11, two schoolchildren, 13 and 14 years old, allegedly burned down a Mi-8 multipurpose helicopter. They were promised 5 million rubles (2.24 million hryvnias) for this;
• on September 21, a Mi-8 military helicopter burned down in the city of Omsk. Allegedly, schoolchildren were also involved in the arson.

Earlier, a 16-year-old resident of Dagestan was arrested in Chelyabinsk, Russia, for allegedly attempting to set fire to a Su–34 bomber military plane at the Shagol airfield.

Due to the Ukrainian Defense Forces' attack on the airfields near Berdiansk and Luhansk last October, the Russian occupiers suffered significant losses. Nine helicopters of different types, an ammunition depot, and an air defense installation were all destroyed.

According to the General Staff of Ukraine's armed forces, since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, the Defense Forces have already destroyed 369 Russian planes and 329 helicopters.