Tsymbulova: Detailed Satellite Images of the Largest Shahed Launch Site Revealed

High-quality satellite imagery of a large-scale launch pad for Shahed kamikaze drones in Tsymbulova, Russia’s Oryol region, has been released.

According to the OSINT communities Strategic Aviation of the Russian Federation and SZ, the facility has at least 93 garages and 15 hangars for storing attack drones. Some of them have already been filled.

According to estimates, more than 500 drones can be stored there at any one time. There are at least 175 units in the garages.

There are also eight stationary launchers at the range. Next to them are 20 more garages, presumably for drone maintenance and preparation for launch.

The facility’s total area exceeds 5 km². The launch road is more than 2.5 km long, enabling mass drone launches.

Tsymbulova is located about 400 km from the border with Ukraine. This allows Shahed to be launched from deep within the territory of the Russian Federation, avoiding retaliatory strikes.

On January 26, 2025, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported that units of the Air Force of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, in cooperation with other components of the Defense Forces, struck storage depots for strike UAVs in the Oryol region of the Russian Federation.

Concrete buildings that were likely used to store and maintain the drones were hit.

The damage to this facility was later confirmed by satellite imagery and the CyberBoroshno OSINT community, which recorded black craters on one of the buildings, indicating a hit.

According to the General Staff, the damaged facility was used to store thermobaric warheads, which are used to equip drones.

In addition, on December 26, 2024, Storm Shadow air-launched cruise missiles already targeted this Shahed kamikaze drone service center in Russia’s Oryol region.

According to satellite imagery, construction of this facility began in late August 2024 and was completed in a few months.