Russia has transferred strategic missile carriers to Chukotka

Recent satellite images of the air base and, in combination, the civilian airport "Anadyr" ("Ugolny"), located in Chukotka, show the appearance of a Tu-160, which was transported there after the successful SBU operation "Web" — the massacre of Russian strategic aviation.

In particular, a public image from the ESA Sentinel satellite from June 4 shows a fairly large aircraft at the site used by Russian strategic bombers. Even taking into account the low resolution of the image, it is sufficient to identify it as a Tu-160 with a wingspan of up to 55.7 meters and a characteristic "flattened" fuselage created using an integrated circuit.

At the same time, this aircraft was not at this airbase on June 2, and a number of satellite images over the past couple of months demonstrate that the Russians did not keep their strategic aviation there. Although such episodes were recorded, in particular, in 2024 as part of the exercises of the so-called "VKS" of the Russian Federation.

And the most likely reason for the appearance of the Russian Tu-160 at this airbase is an attempt to save it from the actions of the Ukrainian Defense Forces. After all, in Anadyr, it is not protected by a range of over 6.6 thousand km, because the distance is not an obstacle for remotely controlled drones from thousands of kilometers away, which arrive on trucks. And the fact that a truck with drones simply will not reach Anadyr, because there are no roads there.

As strange as it may sound, there is no road that allows you to get to this remote place. Only temporary routes for extreme expeditions on all-terrain vehicles. And all logistics are based on air transport and limited sea shipping during open navigation.

And although in 2012 the Russian Federation launched a program to build the Kolyma-Anadyr highway with a plan to complete it by the end of 2024, by the end of last year only 230 km of the road had been put into operation. Out of 2,300 kilometers, that is, exactly 10% in 10 years.

The Russians will build about 10 km of new highway every year. And if this pace continues, it will be possible to deliver a truck with drones there in about 200 years, closer to the 30s of the 23rd century. But it is unlikely to be relevant.

It is also worth noting that the Anadyr air base is only 500 km from the US-Russian border. But apparently the Kremlin decided that it was safer this way.