Ukraine Drone Hits Locomotive On Vital Russian Rail Route Beyond Front

This rail route is now crucial to Russian logistics because of the vulnerability of the Kerch Bridge which spans the gap between mainland Russia and Crimea. 

That the Ukrainians hit a moving train carrying fuel not only destroyed the engine but damaged the tracks and ignited the fuel. JL
.
Sofiia Syngaivska reports in Defense Express:

The Ronin drone unit of the 56th Separate Mechanized Brigade hit a Russian locomotive pulling a fuel train. The hit took place near occupied Tokmak, which is part of the railway corridor from Donbas to Crimea, crucial for the logistics of the Russian Army. That location is 30 kilometers deep from the current front line, a range that can be considered a record. 

Footage has emerged showing that Ronin drone unit of the 56th Separate Mechanized Brigade hit what is possibly the most unusual target for Ukrainian FPV drones in this war – a locomotive pulling a fuel train.

 

The Oko Hora community geolocated this footage, revealing that the hit occurred almost 30 kilometers deep from the current front line, a range that can be considered a record. Another important detail is that the hit took place near the temporarily occupied Tokmak, which is part of the railway corridor from Donbas to Crimea, crucial for the logistics of the russian Army.

The Ronin drone unit scores a long-range hit on russian locomotive supplying fuel / Photo credit: The Oko Hora community

At this point, it’s worth analyzing the nature of the target that was hit. The footage showed a two-section 2TE116 type locomotive, which has a body length of 36 meters and a total weight of 276 tons. These dimensions make the hit locomotive not only the most unusual but also the largest target for Ukrainian FPV drone. The drone hit the locomotive with equal likelihoods of either having no impact or causing a malfunction that would complicate the further movement of the fuel train. However, this episode is sufficient for two important conclusions.

russian 2TE116 type locomotive / open source

First, the drone capabilities of the Armed Forces of Ukraine have increased to a level that allows hitting moving targets at a distance of 20-30 kilometers from the front line. Second, the russians are actively using the railway corridor from Donbas to Crimea for their logistics, making this route a priority target.