On the morning of June 22, the Russian invaders announced some of the Crimean bridges’ destruction. The bridges connect the temporarily occupied Crimean Peninsula to certain areas of the Kherson region, which have been occupied by Russia.

The existing road bridge across the Chonhar Strait and the old one parallel to it, which is no longer used, have been damaged.

Later, Russian propagandists published images with the results of the defeat of transport crossings in the media and on their social media accounts.

In the images, one of the lanes of the road bridge has a significant breakthrough. The road surface and structure of the old bridge are also damaged.

The Russians said that the bridges were hit with missiles around 5 a.m.

“To be continued,” — promised the representative of the Defence Intelligence of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, Andrii Yusov, while commenting on the morning strikes on two bridges in the Chonhar area for 24 Channel.

He has informed that the Defense Forces, the Resistance Movement and the local residents waiting for the liberation of the occupied territories are working closely on th issue.

Yusov also added that the military feasibility of the things that are now happening in the temporarily occupied territories ought to be analyzed only after the liberation of these territories.

It is worth noting that in war with Ukraine the Russians used Chonhar bridge to transfer military equipment and weapons from the occupied Crimea. Some propagandists from the Russian Federation claimed that this path went up to 70% of transport flows and military cargo.

Until the very last moment, this route remained relatively safe, as the Chonhar Bridge is located approximately 128 kilometers away from the nearest point on the front line of contact, on the right bank of the Kherson region. Therefore, the Armed Forces of Ukraine could not reach there without a “long arm.”

Ways of communication between Crimea and mainland Ukraine

Three main roads connect the temporarily occupied Crimea with the Kherson region: two from Armyansk in the directions of Kalanchak and Chaplynka, the third one — from the Dzhankoy district through Chonhar towards mainland Ukraine.

There is also a railway bridge that passes through the Chonhar Strait from Dzhankoy towards the village of Sivash and the railway station with the same-name.

The road on the Arabat Spit, which goes towards Henichesk in the Kherson region, might also be used by the invaders for the transfer of troops and the delivery of military equipment and weapons.

The occupation “authorities” announced the restoration of the bridge damaged at the beginning of the Russian full-scale invasion, which connects the Arabat Spit with Henichesk in January 2023.

This bridge was blown up by the Ukrainian military in February 2022 to stop the movement of Russian convoys.

Back in November 2022, the Defence Intelligence of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine also reported that the Russians were actively using the road through the Arabat Spit between the Crimea and the Kherson region.

They noted that until February 24, 2022, this road was not used since it was dug up.

However, after the start of the Russian full-scale invasion, the engineering units of the invaders restored the gravel road and transport links, which made it possible to shorten the route from the occupied Crimea to Kherson, and later even to the Donetsk region.

It is worth noting that the road through Chonhar is now the most convenient for the transportation of military equipment by Russians to the Zaporizhzhya region, where fierce hostilities continue. Destruction or damage to the railway and road bridges will complicate the logistics of the invaders in the southern direction, where the Ukrainian Defense Forces are currently engaged in offensive actions in the Melitopol and Berdyansk directions.

What can be done to destroy the bridges to the Crimea?

After a report of damage to bridges across the Chonhar Strait, the Russians said the they were hit by Storm Shadow cruise missiles.

The invaders published photos of the wreckage [of the missiles] with inscriptions in English, serial numbers, and other designations.

The footage presented by the Russians showcases the extensive damage inflicted upon the existing road bridge, revealing significant penetration through the roadbed and the upper portion of the transport structure.

On the photo, it can also be seen that there is certain damage to the bridge pillar and concrete debris nearby. But it is difficult to determine the level of damage from these images, as well as whether they will affect the stability of the entire structure.

It can be assumed that the pillar was the main target of the strike if Storm Shadow was actually hit on the bridge. These missiles were created to destroy important static objects, in particular bridges and bunkers. The missile has a multi-stage warhead: the first charge penetrates the outer layer of concrete, and the second charge flies inside the bunker and explodes.

Reinforced concrete bridge structures have a high level of survivability.

This was proved by the Ukrainian experience in defeating the Antonivka Road Bridge over the Dnipro River in Kherson. The bridge was an important strategic spot for the Russian invasion army.

The Armed Forces of Ukraine were hitting the bridge with precision artillery shells and rockets from the HIMARS missile system for several months (from July to early November 2022).

Such constant strikes made the bridge unsuitable for heavy vehicles. Therefore, the Russians tried to build a bridge from barges near the Antonivka Bridge. They also used ferries and other watercraft to transport equipment and personnel from one bank of the Dnipro River to another.

However, the Armed Forces of Ukraine didn’t manage to completely crush the bridge, destroy the pillars or collapse several spans of the roadbed.

Finally, Russian invaders blew up part of the Antonivka Road Bridge while retreating from Kherson on the night of November 11, 2022.

The Russians first mined and then blew up the structure and as a result several pillars and spans of the bridge were destroyed.

Is it possible for the invaders to cut off the path from the Crimea?

It may take a long time to destroy the bridge with precision ammunition until it is completely unusable.

But the Antonivka Road Bridge should not be directly compared with the Chonhar Bridge. They have completely different technical parameters and design differences.

Therefore, it seems that to destroy railway and road bridges across the Chonhar Strait much less precision strikes will be needed.

The mass of the high-explosive fragmentation warhead of GMLRS guided missiles, which are used by М270 and М142 HIMARS multiple rocket launchers, is about 90 kilograms, and the warhead of the Storm Shadow rocket is about 450 kg and is designed specifically for breaking through concrete shelters.

Bridges across the Chonhar Strait are located at a distance of more than 100 km from the current front line. In addition to Storm Shadow missiles, these objects fall under the radius of destruction of a new Ukrainian weapons systems, in particular high-precision Vilkha-M missiles.

Back in March, 2023 Ivan Vinnik, first deputy chairman of the National Association of the Defense Industrial Complex of Ukraine, stated that manufacturers planned to modify the Vilkha-M to increase its fire range to 150 km. However, he declined to specify exactly when the missiles might be ready.

“Let’s just say, we hope, just during the counterattack, the probability of which is expected in the south, in the direction of the Sea of Azov,” he told The War Zone media.

Vinnik also added that “the tests would take place on the battlefield.”

The ATACMS tactical ballistic missiles could be very helpful in destroying such objects that are strategically important for the invaders. However, the United States has so far refused to supply them to Ukraine.

At the same time, it is worth noting that the U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee supported a bipartisan resolution calling on the Biden administration to provide Ukraine with these missiles with a fire range of up to 300 km.

The bridge in Chonhar is important for transporting goods from Russia to the occupied Crimea through the so-called transport “land corridor” from the Rostov region of the Russian Federation through the occupied Melitopol and Crimea.

After the explosion on the Crimean bridge last year, the flow of goods from the Russian Federation towards the Crimea occurs through the temporarily occupied regions of Donetsk, Zaporizhzhya, and Kherson.

If Ukrainian Forces manage to destroy or significantly damage the bridge over Chonhar, the Russians will be forced to use only the roads through Kalanchak and Chaplynka in the occupied Kherson region.

These roads are much closer to the front line and can be shelled by Ukrainian long-range weapons systems, for example, HIMARS or even artillery.

Thus, the Ukrainian Defense Forces will be able to take under fire control not only the ways of movement of the Russian invasion army but also the ways of supply to the Crimea.

Before the introduction of long-range French-British Storm Shadow cruise missiles into service with the Armed Forces of Ukraine, these communication routes were unattainable for strikes, and the Russians considered them rear.