Attack on the Smolensk Aircraft Plant: the Central Defense Ministry highlights the significance of this facility.

In Smolensk, last night, January 21, the local aviation plant came under aerial attack. This facility is involved in the production of military aircraft.

This information was reported by RBK-Ukraine, citing the head of the Center for Counteracting Disinformation (CCD) under the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine Andrey Kovalenko.

It is noted that the Joint Stock Company (JSC) "Smolensk Aviation Plant" (SMAZ) is closely linked with other enterprises of the Russian defense industry. It supplies components and participates in cooperation to create modern aviation systems.

According to Kovalenko, the Smolensk Aviation Plant is engaged in the production and modernization of military aircraft, particularly the Su-25 attack aircraft.

"The enterprise also provides major repairs and maintenance of aviation equipment, allowing the Russian Federation to maintain the combat readiness of outdated aircraft models," he explained.

The head of the CCD emphasized that each strike on such a plant "will undermine Russia's ability to keep its aviation in a combat-ready state."

Drone Strike on the Smolensk Aviation Plant

Earlier, it was reported that in Smolensk last night, January 21, several explosions were heard, and drones were spotted in the sky. Additionally, air defense units of the Russian Armed Forces were active in the area.

Initially, Russian media reported that the target of the drone attack might have been the local oil refinery. However, it later became clear that the Smolensk Aviation Plant was specifically targeted.

Numerous videos of the explosions in Smolensk during the drone attack and the operation of air defense were shared online. There were also reports of fires in the city.

The governor of the Smolensk region attributed the aerial assault to Ukraine. The Russian official also claimed that the attempt to carry out an attack using unmanned aerial vehicles on facilities in the region was "thwarted," and there were no casualties.

"Fires were noted on the ground and on the roofs of certain buildings due to the debris from UAVs falling. Windows of residential buildings were also damaged," the governor stated in a publication on Telegram in the morning.

Furthermore, The Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation in a morning report assured that 55 Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles were "intercepted and destroyed over 5 regions last night, including ten in the Smolensk region."

Recall that in late December, the oil depot in the city of Yartsevo in the Smolensk region was hit by drones, resulting in a significant fire.

The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine confirmed the strike on the "Yartsevskaya" oil depot at that time, specifying that the operation was conducted by special operations forces in coordination with unmanned systems and other components of Ukraine's defense forces.

Additionally, on January 4, it became known that explosions were heard again in the Smolensk region, and it was reported that the drone attack may have targeted the enterprise JSC "Avangard," which is part of a large Russian missile manufacturing holding, JSC "VPK NPO Mashinostroyeniya" and JSC "Corporation Tactical Missile Armament."