#ukrainewar #ukrainewarupdate #military #militarydevelopments #militarystrategy A string of ATACMS strikes has put Crimea’s airfields and air defenses under sustained pressure. Verified satellite imagery after the May 2024 attack on Belbek shows destroyed Russian jets on the apron, while the April 2024 strike on Dzhankoi damaged S‑300/400 launchers and radar—evidence that long‑range missiles can punch through crowded air defenses. Through summer 2024, additional hits—Saky air base and a unique Cold‑War‑era space communications station—tightened the logistics and air‑defense math across the peninsula. The effect isn’t just physical damage; it’s sustained dispersal, thicker but costlier air‑defense rotations, and rising insurance/repair overheads on ports, rails, and fuel hubs that feed Crimea. As longer‑range ATACMS variants arrived, Ukraine gained the ability to threaten runways, radar nodes, depots, and bridge approaches across most of Crimea—forcing Russia to spend more to achieve less. No single strike is decisive, but the pattern is: repeated hits that erode capacity, raise risk, and narrow options.
