- Service ensign · official · carried by Air Force
- State affiliation · Russia
- Vigil category device · not official insignia
Identity provenance
Service ensign: Flag of the Russian Air Force — carried by Air Force, not issued to this record. The service flag of the Air Force, adopted 2004 and retained when the Air Force became a branch of the VKS. The design itself is not an object of copyright: Article 1259(6) of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation excludes official symbols and signs. The file shipped is the Wikimedia Commons SVG "Flag of the Russian Air Force.svg", released under PD-RU-exempt on that basis, so no attribution or share-alike obligation attaches. Optimised for web display; geometry unaltered.
State affiliation: Russia.
The smaller square mark is a Vigil category device, drawn from this record’s own domain, echelon and role — not an official insignia.
In brief
The strategic bomber command — the Tu-95MS, Tu-160 and Tu-22M3 fleets that carry the cruise-missile campaign against Ukrainian infrastructure.
- Scope
- Structure, role, lineage and links. No subordinate records published.
- Subordination
- Subordination confirmed
- Sources
- 4 on the record
- Record state
- Partial
- Broad area of activity
- Cruise-missile launches from deep Russian and Caspian airspace.
- Notable history
- Has carried the long-range cruise-missile campaign against Ukrainian cities and the power grid since 2022, its bombers firing from sanctuary distances — while its airfields deep inside Russia became publicly documented targets of Ukrainian long-range drones from the war's second year.
- Strengths
- Standoff reach that Ukrainian air defence cannot answer at the launch point; a large cruise-missile magazine sustained by wartime production.
- Limitations
- A small, ageing and effectively irreplaceable bomber fleet whose basing has been repeatedly shown vulnerable to cheap deep-strike drones.
Campaigns
Campaigns naming this organisation as a participant. The campaign record owns the relationship and grades it; this list is computed.
- The strategic campaign against Ukraine's electricity system Primary force · Since October 2022 · moderate confidence · as of 2026-06
Long-range aviation is the delivery means for the cruise-missile component of the campaign.
Campaign involvement
Strategic campaign against Ukraine's grid begins
Massed missile and Shahed-drone salvos against power infrastructure open a recurring seasonal campaign to break civilian endurance through winter darkness and cold.
Quick actions
System access
Where this record connects into the rest of Vigil. Each row is here because this organisation actually reaches it.
Assessed as of — 2026-07 Last reviewed — 2026-07
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