From May 5 to May 8, Russia closed the airspace over the Kapustin Yar military training ground in the Astrakhan region. The facility tests the latest anti-aircraft developments and ballistic missiles, including medium-range ones.
Kapustin Yar is located in the northeastern part of the Astrakhan region. The facility began operations in 1946 as the State Central Training Ground of the Ministry of Armed Forces of the USSR for testing missile weapons – the first Soviet anti-aircraft and ballistic missiles.
According to open sources, the first ever launch of the Oreshnik medium-range ballistic missile (MRBM) was carried out from Kapustin Yar.
Balkan analyst Drago Bosnic stated that Russia is developing a new version of Oreshnik with improved control systems and expanded payload.