On January 8, Ukrainian drones flew at least 400 miles to attack near the Russian Air Force’s Engels bomber base in the city of Saratov in southern Russia.

The explosions sparked a fire in a sprawling warehouse containing up to 800,000 tons of fuel – a fire that raged for days.

After six days, the fire finally burned itself out or the fire department put it out. Hours later, on Tuesday, drones struck a second time. “There will be no rest for the wicked,” cheered the Ukrainian Center for Strategic Communications.

Tuesday’s attack was part of a larger wave of drone strikes, reportedly the largest of Ukraine’s 35-month war, that targeted fuel and ammunition depots and oil refineries, among other sites.

“Every damaged ammunition depot, refinery, fuel depot or chemical plant weakens Russia’s ability to wage war against Ukraine,” the Ukrainian security service said Kiev Post.

It is unclear what types of drones were involved in the successive attacks on Engels, but Kiev Post mentioned PD-2, Beaver, Liutyi and UJ-22 – all between six and 10 feet long and propeller driven.

Ukraine has developed a dizzying array of long-range unmanned aerial vehicles, including some based on modified sport aircraft that can reach a range of 800 miles using hundreds of pounds of explosives.

No matter what type of drone it was, the double-tap attack had a clear goal: to curb Russian airstrikes on Ukrainian cities, even if only temporarily.

Engels is home to the Russian Air Force’s Tupolev Tu-95 and Tu-160 strategic bombers, which routinely attack Ukraine with cruise missiles. Thousands of Ukrainians were killed and injured in these rocket attacks.

“This storage facility contains rare fuel for Russia’s long-range strategic bomber fleet, which regularly fires a series of missiles at the population of Ukraine,” the Center for Strategic Communications said.

Blowing up a fuel depot, even just twice, won’t stop the missile attacks – there are other bomber bases, after all – but it could slow the pace of attacks for a while. And if Ukrainian drones continue to strike and Russian air defenses do nothing to stop them, the impact on Russian bomber operations could increase.

The Ukrainians smell blood – or more precisely: burning aviation fuel. Since Russia expanded its war against Ukraine in February 2022, drones have attacked Engels at least eight times. More attacks are sure to follow.

“Today I held a staff meeting,” said the Ukrainian president. Volodymyr Zelenskyj announced this on Monday. “The central topic was the development of our drones and all forms of their use. There have been reports on production and contracts – from drones (first-person perspective) to long-range drones – as well as solutions aimed at more effectively destroying the occupiers and protecting the lives of our soldiers.”

Zelensky was apparently presented with ideas for new and presumably improved drones. “We have technological proposals that need to be implemented,” he wrote. Whether these suggestions had anything to do with the type of drones that double-attacked Engels is unclear.

But don’t be shocked if they do. As Russia’s broader war against Ukraine approaches its fourth year, Ukrainians are striking deeper inside Russia with greater frequency and impact. And their ambition to strike even deeper and more often is growing.

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