Overview
- Ukrainian military intelligence said a resistance operative set two fighters on fire at an airfield near Lipetsk on the night of Dec. 20–21, roughly 340 kilometers from the Ukrainian border.
- HUR described two weeks of preparation that mapped patrol routes and guard shifts, enabling entry into a hangar, ignition of the jets, and an undetected exit.
- The agency estimated the affected aircraft were worth up to $100 million and cited tail numbers 12 and 82 in its statement.
- Initial reports listed one Su-27 and one Su-30, while later coverage said HUR confirmed both were Su-30s, with no independent confirmation from Russian authorities.
- Ukrainian services also reported a Dec. 20 drone strike on two Su-27s at Belbek in occupied Crimea, situating the Lipetsk action within a broader effort to degrade Russian airpower.