Ukrainian drone strikes reported at Russian MiG plant, other defense industry facilities amid mass attack

Editor's note: The story was updated with comments from Ukrainian official Andrii Kovalenko.

Drone attacks were reported on July 11 near a Russian oil depot and multiple defense industry facilities, including a MiG jet fighter production plant near Moscow, according to an independent Russian news outlet, Astra.

Russia's Defense Ministry claimed its forces downed 155 Ukrainian drones overnight, including 53 over Kursk Oblast and 13 over Tula Oblast.

Kyiv regularly targets Russian industrial and military facilities deep in the rear, aiming to undermine Moscow's ability to wage its all-out war.

Residents of Tula, a city over 300 kilometers (roughly 200 miles) from the Ukrainian border, reported explosions in the city's industrial Proletarsky district. According to Astra, three major defense industry facilities that have been previously targeted in drone strikes are located in the area.

The JSC Instrument Design Bureau develops precision munitions, the NPO Splav produces multiple-launch rocket systems, and Shcheglovsky Val JSC — one of Russia's largest defense companies — produces guided weapons, air defenses, and small arms.

It is not immediately clear whether the facilities suffered damage. Tula Oblast Governor Dmitry Milyaev reported one person killed and another injured, without providing additional details on potential damage.

Russian authorities largely do not comment on possible damage to strategic or military facilities caused by Ukrainain attacks.

In Moscow Oblast, residents of the Lukhovitsy town, lying some 110 kilometers (70 miles) southeast of the Russian capital, reported a drone attack near the local aviation plant and an oil depot, Astra reported.

The Lukhovitsy Aviation Plant produces warplanes used by Russian forces in Ukraine, including MiG-29 fighter jets and MiG-31 Kinzhal missile carriers. Astra noted that the drone strike's actual target in Lukhovitsy remains unclear.

"The Lukhovitsy Aviation Plant was under attack. It specializes in the production and modernization of the MiG-29 and MiG-31 fighters and their modifications," said Andrii Kovalenko, an official at Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council.

Kovalenko also noted that the facility is developing new fighter jet models based on the MiG platforms and is involved in upgrading the Shahed-type attack drones.

Elsewhere in the region, drones reportedly attacked the Kronstadt drone factory in Dubna, roughly 100 kilometers (60 miles) north of Moscow, a facility previously targeted in a Ukrainian attack in May.

Moscow Oblast Governor Andrey Vorobyov did not report on possible attacks in the region, and Russia's Defense Ministry did not report downing any drones in the area.

Russian regional authorities reported injuries in other regions as a result of Ukrainian drone attacks, including four people allegedly wounded in Kursk Oblast.

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The Pulkovo Airport in St. Petersburg suspended operations amid the drone strikes, according to Russia's Federal Air Transport Agency.

The Ukrainian military has not commented on the claims, which could not be independently verified.

The reported drone strikes come as Russia intensifies aerial strikes against Ukrainian cities. Russian forces launched their largest aerial attack yet on July 9, deploying over 740 drones and missiles in a single night.