Drones hit Bashkir Soda Company, Russia's sole maker of ballistic-fiber component

Mayor Emil Shaimardanov said eight unmanned aerial vehicles were shot down over the city and that debris fell on the grounds of one enterprise, which he said was operating normally. He did not name the plant.

Astra and the Ukrainian monitoring channel Supernova+ reported that the target was the Bashkir Soda Company (BSK), and that smoke was rising over the facility.

BSK is part of the Roskhim holding and, according to The Moscow Times, is listed in a closed register of defense-industry enterprises maintained by the Ministry of Industry and Trade. The company ranks first in Russia for production of calcined and food-grade soda.

According to The Moscow Times, BSK supplies military plants with hydrochloric acid and dichloroethane. It is also the only Russian manufacturer of terephthaloyl chloride, a component used in synthetic ballistic yarns and aramid materials from which body armor and armored-vehicle protection elements are made. Astra noted that it is Russia's only production site for the component used in armor materials.

The Bashkortostan State Committee for Emergency Situations declared a drone alert, and Ufa airport stopped accepting and dispatching flights. A drone alert was also declared in settlements in Perm Krai; in Perm a siren sounded at about 6:30 a.m. local time, after which schools began evacuating.

Drones attacked BSK before, on August 27, when smoke was also seen over the plant and the authorities did not comment on the attack. On October 23, drones attacked the Azot chemical plant owned by Uralkhim in Berezniki, Perm Krai.

The same night, drones flew toward the Moscow region. Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said air defense neutralized most of 613 drones on distant approaches, with 231 destroyed as they approached Moscow. Russia's Defense Ministry reported 1,214 Ukrainian drones shot down. Domodedovo, Vnukovo and Zhukovsky airports suspended operations overnight and lifted restrictions in the morning.

The Ukrainian OSINT channel Exilenova+, citing the NASA FIRMS service, reported a fire at the Marinovka airfield in the Volgograd region.

Accounts differ: the Sterlitamak mayor describes falling debris and minor damage without naming the plant, while Astra, Supernova+ and The Moscow Times say the drones' target was the Bashkir Soda Company.