Krymsk air base

Krymsk (also referred to as Krymskaya airfield) is an air base of the Russian Aerospace Forces as part of the 4th Air and Air Defence Forces Army, Southern Military District. The base is also known as the 6972nd Air Force Base is an airport located 4.8 kilometres (3.0 mi) to the north of Krymsk. As of 2024 satellite imagery shows runway 04/22 extended to 3.00 km. History In 2011, the airfield was closed for renovation. It was during this reconstruction period, the following year, that the 2012 Krasnodar Krai flood struck the base (see below), catching aircraft that had not yet been relocated ahead of the works. The main fighter regiment at the base had gone through a series of re-organizations and re-designations by 2012: January 9, 2001: absorbed the 562nd Fighter Aviation Regiment, and renamed 3rd Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment. January 12, 2009: renamed 6972nd Guards Aviation Base. As of February 2022, the base was home to the: 1st Guards Composite Aviation Division HQ 3rd Composite Guards Aviation Regiment with two squadrons of Sukhoi Su-27M3 (NATO: Flanker) Role in the Syrian Civil War (2015–2016) Krymsk served as a staging point for Russian air operations during Moscow's intervention in the Syrian Civil War. Su-34 "Fullback" fighter-bombers flew combat sorties against targets in Syria directly from Krymsk in November 2015 — one of only two documented instances of Su-34s flying Syria strikes from a base outside the Middle East theatre, the other being Hamadan Air Base in Iran the following year. The Krymsk-based 3rd Guards regiment was also observed conducting aerial refuelling training with an Il-78 tanker as part of its integration of newly arrived Su-30M2s around this period, reflecting the base's broader role in sustaining extended-range operations for the Southern Military District. 2012 flooding According to Izvestiya, the airbase suffered from floods in Krymsk in July 2012. An eyewitness reported that the flow of water washed sand and rubble destined for the runway, under the water were not only pits, but also the basements and first floors of residential and administrative buildings of the military townlet. "About 15 combat aircraft flooded, which did not have time to take out before reconstruction. At the same time, the builders and the military were most afraid that aviation kerosene would be poured out due to the elements and the bombs would begin to tear". In the same article, an unnamed representative of the military district said that at the time of the reconstruction at the airfield there were only "aircraft taken out of service and in storage" and there was no fuel and ammunition affected by the flood. The Russian Ministry of Defence denied reports of serious damage to the airfield. A spokesman for the Southern Military District said: "The message that the airfield in Krymsk was badly damaged and 200 million rubles would be required for its reconstruction is not true." He also stressed that the airfield "is located on a hill, and the maximum amount of water at the very peak of the flood reached a height of 10 centimeters". After the floods, 5,500 military were deployed to the city of Krymsk to help rebuild the city, and a military campground was built on the airfield of the Krymsk airfield. Russo-Ukrainian war 14–15 November 2024 drone attack On the night of 14 November 2024, during the Russo-Ukrainian War, Ukraine launched a massive drone attack on the Krymsk military airfield, where Su-27 and Su-30 fighter jets and Ka-27 helicopters are stationed. Ukrainian officials, including the head of Ukraine's Center for Countering Disinformation, said the strike specifically targeted the airfield. The Krasnodar Krai governor said drone debris damaged the roofs of four homes and one vehicle, and broke windows at another property, in the Krymsk and Krasnoarmeysky districts, with no casualties reported. The Russian Ministry of Defence said they shot down 51 drones using conventional air defence capabilities, 36 of them over Krasnodar Krai, and that no casualties were reported. A statement by the local district head giving a similar tally of intercepted drones was later deleted without explanation. The strike formed part of a wider pattern of Ukrainian attacks that period on Russian rear-area military airfields, including Lipetsk-2 and facilities in Belgorod Oblast. 9 April 2026 strike on adjacent infrastructure On 9 April 2026, drones struck a major oil pumping station in Krymsk used for export logistics. Krasnodar Krai governor Veniamin Kondratyev said an industrial enterprise in the city was hit, and that a man was killed by falling debris in a nearby village. Local residents reported more than 20 explosions over roughly an hour, and open-source analysts linked the strike to the Crimean Linear Production and Dispatch Station near the town. Krymsk's military airfield sits in the same immediate area, and witnesses reported bright flashes consistent with air-defence activity and low-altitude drone flights over the base during the attack, though the strike's primary target was reported as the energy infrastructure rather than the airfield itself. See also List of military airbases in Russia 4th Air and Air Defence Forces Army Notes References