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Satellite images show that at least seven fighter jets at the Crimean air base were blown up after an apparent Ukrainian attack on the base.
Ukraine said Wednesday that nine Russian warplanes were destroyed in a series of explosions that appeared to be the result of a Ukrainian attack that would represent a major escalation in the war.
Russia has denied that any aircraft were damaged in Tuesday’s blast – and that no attack took place. But satellite photos clearly showed that at least seven fighter jets at the base were blown up, and others may have been damaged.
Ukrainian officials have not publicly claimed responsibility for the explosion, while mocking Russia’s explanation that a careless smoker could have caused munitions at Saki Air Force Base to catch fire and explode​​​.
Analysts also said the explanation did not make sense and the Ukrainians could have attacked the base with anti-ship missiles.
If Ukrainian forces were in fact responsible for the blast, it would be the first known major attack on a Russian military base on the Crimean peninsula, which the Kremlin seized from Ukraine in 2014. Russian warplanes have used Saki to attack the area in southern Ukraine.
Crimea is of enormous strategic and symbolic importance to both sides. The Kremlin has demanded that Ukraine recognize Crimea as part of Russia as a key condition for ending the fighting, while Ukraine has vowed to drive the Russians out of the peninsula and all other occupied territories.
The blast killed one person and injured 14, and tourists fled in panic as smoke rose from the nearby coastline. Video showed shattered windows and holes in the brick walls of some buildings.
One tourist, Natalia Lipovaya, said that after the powerful explosion, “the earth disappeared from under my feet”.
Sergey Milochinsky, a local resident, recalled hearing a roar and seeing a mushroom cloud from his window. “Everything started to crumble, crumble,” he said.
Crimea regional leader Sergei Aksyonov said some 250 residents were moved to temporary housing after dozens of apartment buildings were damaged.
Russian authorities tried to play down the bombing, saying on Wednesday that all hotels and beaches on the peninsula, a popular tourist destination for many Russians, were unaffected.
But videos posted on social media showed long queues of slow-moving cars on the road to Russia as tourists traveled to Russia.
Ukrainian presidential adviser Oleksiy Arestovych said vaguely that the explosion was either caused by a Ukrainian-made long-range weapon or by Ukrainian guerrillas operating in Crimea.
Oleksandr Zavitnevich, a member of the Ukrainian parliament, said the airport was no longer usable. He reported on Facebook that there were fighter jets, tactical reconnaissance aircraft and military transport aircraft.
“Officially in Kyiv there was silence, but the military unofficially recognized it as a Ukrainian strike,” said Ukrainian military analyst Olekhzhdanov.
The base is at least 125 miles from the nearest Ukrainian position. Zhdanov said the Ukrainian military could have hit it with anti-ship missiles with the necessary range provided by Ukraine or the West.
The Washington-based Institute for War Institute said it could not independently determine the cause of the explosion, but noted that simultaneous explosions at two locations on the base could rule out accidental fires, but not sabotage or missile strikes.
But it added: “The Kremlin has no reason to accuse Ukraine of conducting airstrikes that caused damage, as such an airstrike would prove the ineffectiveness of Russian air defenses.”
During the war, the Kremlin reported multiple fires and explosions on Russian territory close to the Ukrainian border, blaming strikes in Ukraine for some of those incidents. Ukrainian authorities have mostly remained silent on the events.
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