Ukraine’s ‘Black Bird’ Operation Targets Russian Power Supply as Deep-Strike Duel Intensifies
Ukraine’s 422nd Regiment says its ‘Black Bird’ operation has hit or destroyed the main energy sources powering Russian troops on the southern axis, as Ukrainian intelligence reports a destroyed depot and a brigade claims a Russian Osa air-defense system was taken out.
Ukraine is trying to hit Russia’s war effort where it runs: at the power, fuel and air defenses behind the front.
On 19 September, Ukraine’s 422nd Regiment said it is carrying out an operation it calls “Black Bird” against energy infrastructure supplying Russian forces on the southern axis. According to the regiment, the main sources of power feeding Russian units there “have now been hit or destroyed.” The claim has not been independently verified, including which facilities were struck, but it signals a deliberate campaign against the systems that keep Russian troops operating in occupied territory.
Ukraine’s military intelligence service, HUR, separately reported that its operators located a Russian depot containing fuel, lubricants and ammunition in the Zaporizhzhia region and destroyed it in a follow-up mission. HUR said the strike completely destroyed the building and everything stored inside. In another reported action, Ukraine’s Spartan Brigade said it destroyed a Russian Osa air-defense system in occupied Donetsk region, about 40 km from Volnovakha, using drones operated by the Black Sky Unmanned Systems Battalion.
These strikes come as Ukraine publicizes the damage it is taking at the front and the efforts to blunt Russian attacks. A Ukrainian soldier recorded a “fire belt” of Russian glide bombs hitting frontline positions almost simultaneously. Ukrainian air-defense crews also released footage showing a new STING S system destroying a Russian Geran-5 drone-rocket, described as faster and carrying more explosives than other Geran variants.
For both armies, the message is the same: areas once assumed to be rear zones are now contested. Power infrastructure that feeds Russian bases, depots storing fuel and ammunition, and short-range air-defense batteries are moving higher up Ukraine’s target list. Russia, for its part, is using glide bombs and drones to batter trenches, bridges and depots on the Ukrainian side.
If Operation Black Bird is as effective as the 422nd Regiment claims, Russian commanders on the southern axis could face power cuts and slower repairs just as Ukraine tries to hold or pressure lines in Zaporizhzhia and nearby sectors. Eliminating an Osa system 40 km behind the front may also open a clearer path for Ukrainian drones and missiles to reach deeper into occupied territory.
Watch for changes in Russian activity on the southern axis that might suggest fuel or power shortages, signs that Russia is hardening or dispersing depots and substations, and more Ukrainian video evidence of deep strikes. On the defensive side, how widely systems like STING S are deployed, and how they perform against faster Geran-5 drones, will shape how long each side can sustain this duel in the rear.
Sources
- OSINT