A successful Ukrainian strike on the Russian Iskander operational-tactical missile system became possible due to an increase in the warhead power of Ukrainian mid-strike drones, according to Defense Express. On 28 April, Ukraine conducted an attack on Russian positions near the settlement of Ovrazhky in Crimea.
During the strike, Russian launchers were located in shelters designed to withstand Soviet-era ballistic missiles. These reinforced shelters became the main challenge of the operation.
“Evidently, this aspect was the main difficulty of the strike, as the deployment location of the launchers had been known for a long time,” analysts note.
Russian shelters failed to withstand Ukrainian drone strike
The missile launch activity from this site had previously been repeatedly recorded by resistance networks. However, strikes on the facility were not carried out earlier due to a lack of precision-strike capabilities.
The targeted site is linked to a former Soviet missile division once equipped with R-5 medium-range ballistic missiles. Russia later repurposed these shelters to store Iskander systems.
Analysts note that the reinforced concrete shelters measure up to 45×27 meters and are covered with additional earth for protection. Standard Soviet-era shelters have 40–60 cm reinforced concrete walls, making them difficult to destroy.
Middle-strike drones shift the balance in penetrating fortified structures
However, experts say that new Ukrainian drone warheads now allow penetration of such fortifications.
“Based on the footage, damage to the objects, and more importantly, to what was inside, was still achieved,” analysts say.
They estimate that the key factor was the increased payload of Ukrainian FP-2-type drones, which carry a 105 kg warhead and are planned to be upgraded to 150 kg.
Destruction capability depends not only on warhead weight
Analysts emphasize that penetration effectiveness depends not only on explosive mass, but also on speed and warhead design.
As an example, they cite the GBU-39 SDB precision bomb, capable of penetrating up to one meter of concrete.
For heavily fortified targets, tandem warheads such as BROACH can be used, featuring a pre-charge to breach defenses followed by a main explosive charge. This system is used in missiles such as Storm Shadow/SCALP.
