Commander of the Air Division That Attacked Okhmatdyt Children’s Hospital Seriously Wounded in Russia

Major General Nikolai Varpakhovich, commander of the 22nd Guards Heavy Bomber Aviation Division of the Long-Range Aviation of the Russian Aerospace Forces, was seriously wounded in Russia.

The Russian Telegram channel Mash reported the attack on the military officer.

The attack took place around 7 a.m. on September 3 in the village of Probuzhdenie near Engels in the Saratov region.

It is currently reported that the assailant rode up to a private home on a motorcycle while wearing a helmet and shot the high-ranking Russian military officer.

According to the Dossier of the Spy Telegram channel, one bullet struck the officer in the torso and another in the face. Varpakhovich was hospitalized in critical condition.

The major general’s driver was also wounded but managed to escape and hide; he later returned and called an ambulance.

At the hospital, the bullets were removed from the wounded Varpakhovich, and he is being prepared for transport by plane to Moscow. The assailant has not yet been apprehended.

The aircraft commanded by the wounded major general have been firing cruise missiles at Ukraine since the start of the full-scale invasion. In particular, they attacked the Okhmatdyt specialized children’s hospital in Kyiv with a Kh-101 missile in the summer of 2024.

In late August, the SSU and the Prosecutor General’s Office formally notified Varpakhovich, among others, in absentia that he was suspected of this crime.

The 22nd Division includes the 121st Guards Heavy Bomber Aviation Regiment in Engels, which is equipped with Tu-160s, and the 184th Heavy Bomber Regiment, which operates Tu-95MS aircraft.

The village of Shaykovka is home to the 52nd Guards Heavy Bomber Aviation Regiment, which operates Tu-22M3 aircraft.

The 22nd Aviation Division also includes the 40th Mixed Aviation Regiment in the village of Vysokiy, which operates An-26 aircraft and Mi-26 and Mi-8/17 helicopters.