Ukraine's military intelligence has destroyed one of Russia's electronic-warfare stations in temporarily occupied Crimea, the country's Defense Intelligence agency (HUR) said. Fighters caught the coastal complex on the peninsula and published video of the strike, the latest in a run of intelligence operations stripping Russia's sensors off Crimea. The station was built to listen in on and jam communications across a wide area, and none of that reach kept it alive.

A jamming station that could not save itself

In the night of 26 to 27 July 2026, fighters from HUR's Department of Unmanned Systems found and destroyed the Russian Murmansk-BN electronic-warfare station near Cape Fiolent in occupied Crimea, HUR reported on Telegram, sharing footage of the hit.

The Murmansk-BN is a coastal complex that Russian forces use for radio reconnaissance, intercepting signals, and jamming shortwave communications, HUR said. Its range can reach up to 5,000 kilometers. A station meant to jam and silence an enemy's communications across that distance did nothing to detect the drone closing on it.

What the Murmansk-BN does

The Murmansk-BN is a strategic, long-range electronic-warfare system. Made by the Russian concern KRET, it entered service in 2014 and was first fielded in occupied Crimea, south of Sevastopol. It works in the high-frequency band, the shortwave range armies use for long-distance radio when other links fail.

Western analysts have documented the same system type suppressing high-frequency traffic over great distances. That is what makes each one Ukraine removes a hole in Russia's electronic cover rather than a small loss.

Days after an S-400, another Crimea kill

The jammer is the second high-value Russian system this unit has taken off the peninsula in days. Days ago, HUR's drone operators burned an S-400 Triumf launcher and its 96L6 radar in occupied Crimea, the long-range battery Russia leans on to shoot down aircraft and missiles.

Both hits fit a wider pattern. Ukraine's drone crews have struck close to 200 Russian air-defense assets in the first half of 2026, and over the unit's life have struck 76 radars and 31 electronic-warfare systems among a larger tally, thinning the cover Russia depends on over occupied territory.

Russia has deployed 10 Starlink jammers on the front to counter Ukrainian drone strikes. Ukrainian drone commanders and pilots from the 422nd Unmanned Systems Regiment operating in Zaporizhzhia Oblast told Reuters that Russian forces are using powerful electronic warfare systems to disrupt SpaceX's Starlink satellite internet, which most Ukrainian strike drones use for guidance. Few such systems have been destroyed already. 

Ukraine's Defense Forces identified the system and its specifications in mid-June, when the Security Service of Ukraine and the 422nd Regiment destroyed the first complex in a joint operation on 14 June.

Blocking Starlink for Russia

The Volna Kupol Garant is Russia's response to Ukraine's earlier counter-response to Russia's use of Starlink. Russia had been using illegally obtained Starlink terminals on its own strike drones, including drones that hit Ukrainian civilian targets.

In late January 2026, SpaceX, at Ukraine's request, blocked unauthorized Russian terminals. Beskrestnov called the result a "catastrophe" for Russian forces, and Russian command and control collapsed across the front. Russia is now trying to jam Ukraine's Starlink-guided drones.

Volna Kupol Garant is expensive and easy to hunt

The Volna Kupol Garant emits a signal in the same 14-14.5 GHz Starlink frequency band, targeting eight satellite channels simultaneously.

Because jamming Starlink requires massive power output, the system emits a strong electronic signature.

Each complex consists of six trailers with dish antennas that point toward overhead satellites. The report says Ukraine identified 10 systems on the front and destroyed two, with one destroyed within hours of detection.

"As soon as we struck this facility, our Starlink-equipped drones flew without problems," a 422nd Regiment crew commander with the callsign "Dyryhent" (Conductor) said.