On 22 April, a colossal explosion shook Vladimir Oblast, Russia, in what may be the most spectacular military disaster—or the most daring Ukrainian strike—of the year so far.
The 51st arsenal, a vast ammunition depot located near the village of Barsovo, erupted in flames, leaving locals in stunned disbelief. This facility is operated by Russia’s Main Missile and Artillery Directorate (GRAU), which is responsible for overseeing the country’s largest and most critical weapons storage sites. This wasn’t a small arms cache we’re talking about—the 51st arsenal was a fortress of concrete bunkers holding an estimated 264,000 tons of Russia’s deadliest hardware, including missiles, drones, and artillery shells.
In an instant, hundreds of thousands of munitions vanished from Russia’s war inventory in a fiery explosion that was anything but ordinary. Defense analyst Yan Matveev, who has been closely tracking the destruction of Russian ammunition depots, points out that this is just the latest in a series of devastating hits targeting Russia’s stockpiles, a campaign that began last year.
Let’s break down how Russia is literally watching its war machine go up in smoke, one massive explosion at a time.
51st arsenal goes up in flames
The massive detonation at the 51st arsenal wasn’t just a one-and-done explosion—videos from the scene show intense secondary blasts as shells caught in the initial fireball continued to cook off for hours. Even worse, unexploded munitions went flying in all directions, creating a deadly hazard zone that forced Russian authorities to evacuate seven entire towns, twelve dacha villages, and a military unit.
While official reports claim there were no casualties, it’s almost certain that security personnel stationed at the site didn’t survive the explosion.
This wasn’t just any military outpost. The 51st arsenal’s sprawling concrete bunkers contained a staggering variety of weaponry—from artillery shells to anti-aircraft missiles, with some munitions even stored outdoors. So what triggered this catastrophic explosion? Pro-Russian Telegram channels blame a simple loading accident, but Ukrainian drones were spotted in the area simultaneously.
“The 51st arsenal sits just 64 km from Moscow, inside Russia’s most sophisticated air defense network,” explains Yan Matveev. “After embarrassing breaches in 2023, they fortified this area with overlapping defense systems, creating an almost impenetrable shield.”
Recent Ukrainian drone attempts near Moscow have almost all been shot down—yet somehow, a critical ammunition depot inside this protective bubble turned into the world’s biggest fireworks show. Either Russian personnel catastrophically violated basic safety protocols, or Ukraine found the cheat code to Russia’s air defense system.
Ukraine’s ammo demolition campaign
Since 2024, Ukraine has methodically targeted Russian ammunition stockpiles, with significant explosions continuing to shake the country in 2025. Here’s a closer look at some of the most devastating hits and their implications for Russia’s increasingly strained supply situation.
The destruction of the 107th GRAU arsenal in Toropets, Tver Oblast, in September 2024 remains one of the most significant to date. This monster facility packed 30,000 tons of shells, rockets, guided bombs, and fuel, most now just smouldering craters on satellite imagery.
“Even the newest storage bunkers—supposedly designed to survive nuclear strikes—didn’t stand a chance,” says Matveev. Ukrainian drones reduced these “indestructible” fortresses to rubble.
The blast trapped nearby civilians, officially injuring 14. Military personnel at the site almost certainly died in the inferno—deaths the Russian Ministry predictably buried along with the bodies.
Fall 2024 brought two spectacular explosions in Krasnodar Krai. First, a major depot near Kamenny village went sky-high. The Tikhoretsky arsenal was attacked and caught fire during unloading, exposing munitions, creating a chain reaction that obliterated multiple storage facilities.
Later, Ukrainian forces nailed a Shahed drone depot in Oktyabrsky village, destroying 45 drones, 108 warheads, and tons of fuel.
“Impressive, but Russian factories pump out 100+ Shaheds daily, so it’s just a speed bump,” Matveev notes.
Ukraine’s relentless pressure continued, hitting the 67th GRAU arsenal in Karachev, Bryansk Oblast, followed by a strike on the 23rd GRAU arsenal in Nelidovo, Tver Oblast. Satellite images confirm the total destruction of these critical facilities, which contained Iranian and North Korean rockets that never had the chance to be launched.
“Ukraine has now destroyed four of Russia’s seven GRAU arsenals in European Russia—more than half. They’ve taken down both the largest ones, like 107th, and supposedly impenetrable facilities like 51st,” Matveev concludes.
Air base strikes and forward depot hits
Beyond the massive GRAU arsenals, Ukrainian forces have methodically targeted smaller but strategically crucial ammunition depots, particularly those at Russian airfields where bombs, missiles, and aircraft munitions are stored.
At Lipetsk airfield, a precision strike completely obliterated the local ammunition depot, rendering the base temporarily useless.
The attack on Morozovsk airfield in Rostov Oblast proved even more devastating. Not only were munitions destroyed, but several Su-34 bombers—the backbone of Russia’s air campaign and primary delivery system for guided aerial bombs—were caught in the blast.
“This aircraft is currently the most useful and important for the Russian military,” says Matveev.
The August 2024 strike wiped out everything from standard bombs to high-value KAB precision-guided munitions, dealing a significant blow to Russia’s air capabilities.
In a particularly spectacular operation, Ukrainian drones hit the Engels 2 strategic aviation base in Saratov Oblast. Satellite imagery confirmed a direct hit on facilities where cruise missiles for Tu-95ms bombers are stored, maintained, and calibrated—the same missiles regularly launched against Ukrainian cities. In one stroke, Ukraine eliminated 96 cruise missiles.
“Currently, Russia uses these missiles in small batches, so the loss of this quantity would be enough for 5 to 8 bombing runs,” the expert assesses.
Voronezh Oblast became Ukraine’s prime target throughout 2024, with multiple successful strikes:
- In June, a seemingly insignificant but well-stocked supply depot in Olkhovatka village went up in flames
- By July, the Sergeevka arsenal was set ablaze after another precision drone strike
- Satellite imagery from the Ostrogozhsk district shows the aftermath of yet another hit in September—despite camouflage efforts, the depot burned completely.
Targeting occupied territory
Even Russian-occupied areas of Ukraine weren’t immune to Ukraine’s relentless assault. In Donetsk Oblast, near Selydove, Russian forces had set up a forward base housing a specialised depot for thermobaric munitions. Ukrainian intelligence pinpointed the site and eliminated the threat.
One of the most telling strikes came in July 2023, when a massive explosion in Makiivka destroyed a former hospital building that had been repurposed as a forward ammunition depot for MLRS rockets and artillery shells. Though Russian propagandists initially claimed it was a civilian target, the truth emerged: this was a key logistical site for Russian forces, located close to the front lines.
“It’s hard to imagine how much stronger the Russian military would have been had they been able to use all these munitions as intended,” Matveev reflects.
Ukraine’s ammo hunt reshapes the battlefield
This is just the highlight reel—many smaller explosions and classified operations never made headlines, but still steadily eroded Russia’s arsenal.
Hitting ammunition stockpiles has always been a military priority, typically executed with expensive airstrikes and cruise missiles. Ukraine, working with limited resources, revolutionised this approach by transforming commercial drones into deep-strike weapons capable of penetrating hundreds of kilometres into Russian territory with deadly accuracy.
The scorecard is impressive: several major Russian arsenals destroyed, airfields damaged, forward depots eliminated, and thousands of tons of ammunition turned into spectacular fireballs before they could be used against Ukrainian forces or cities. Each explosion represents not just destroyed munitions but also cancelled Russian operations.
