A power unit of a Russian An-72 military transport plane blew up at the Ostafyevo airfield in Moscow Oblast last week, Ukraine's military intelligence (HUR) reported on Dec. 20.
The Russian Navy plane's main power unit exploded on Dec. 12, the military intelligence agency said without providing details on the cause or circumstances of the explosion. The Kyiv Independent could not verify these claims.
The An-72 is a Soviet transport aircraft, developed by Antonov, Ukraine's largest aircraft manufacturing company. The plane is used mainly by the military and has an estimated price tag of around $4.5 million.
HUR shared footage of the explosion without explicitly claiming responsibility for the incident. The Ostafyevo airfield is located over 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) from Ukraine's border.
"There will be just retribution for every war crime committed against the people of Ukraine," the agency said.
Previously, Ukraine claimed responsibility for several aircraft sabotage operations inside Russia.
In July, a HUR-coordinated operation resulted in damage to three Mi-28 and Ka-226 helicopters on the territory of the Moscow-based National Center of Helicopter Construction of Mil and Kamov, a source in the agency told the Kyiv Independent at the time.
Another operation the same month reportedly led to the destruction of a Mi-8 helicopter at the Samara Kryazh military airfield in Samara Oblast, roughly 800 kilometers (500 miles) from the Ukrainian border.
Khrystyna Zhevlakova
(Updated: )
