politics
Ukraine strikes major Russian rocket factory with cruise missiles
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed on Saturday that his country struck the Progress Rocket Space Center deep within Russia using ground-launched cruise missiles.
TL;DR
- Ukraine confirmed striking the Progress Rocket Space Center in Russia's Samara region.
- The attack used ground-launched "Flamingo" cruise missiles.
- The Progress Center is a key Roscosmos enterprise, involved in electronics production and rocket assembly.
- It assembles Russia's workhorse Soyuz-2 rocket and the newer Soyuz-5 rocket, as well as military satellites.
- The Soyuz-2 rocket is vital for Russian human space launches to the ISS and constitutes over 85% of Russian rocket launches since 2020.
- Damage to Soyuz rocket production could cripple Russia's space programs, as demand already exceeds production capacity.