Full Breakdown
Drone Strikes Shut Down Three Yandex Data Centres in Russia
By Drooid · · How we work
Core Event
On October 8, 2026 a drone strike ignited a fire at Yandex’s data centre in Sasovo, Ryazan Oblast, forcing a shutdown. The next day drones hit the Kaluga centre, disabling several server modules, and on the night of October 10 a strike damaged the Vladimir-region centre, which Yandex confirmed offline on October 11. No injuries were reported, but the attacks disrupted Yandex services such as the Yandex Go taxi app, Yandex Pay, music streaming and cloud platforms.
Background & Context
The attacks come amid an expanding drone campaign by Russia and Ukraine. Since September 2024 each side has targeted the other’s digital infrastructure, including data centres. Ukraine has framed the strikes as “tit-for-tat” responses to Russian attacks on Ukrainian data hubs, a view echoed by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Timeline
- Night of Oct 7–8 – Drones hit the Sasovo centre, causing a fire and full shutdown.
- Oct 8 – Yandex reports power interruptions in the ru-central1-a zone.
- Oct 9 – Drones strike the Kaluga centre, disabling several modules.
- Night of Oct 10 – Explosions accompany a drone attack on the Vladimir centre.
- Oct 11 – Yandex confirms the Vladimir facility is offline; users report outages across Russia and several neighboring countries.
Data & Statistics
- Yandex operates five large-scale data centres; three were hit within four days.
- Detector404 logged roughly 1,600 complaints about Yandex Go, 1,400 about general Yandex services, and 900 about Yandex Pay within one hour of the October 11 outage.
- The Vladimir site is reported to have a capacity of up to 50 MW and 2,880 server racks (alternative sources cite 40 MW and 2,800 racks).
- Yandex shares fell more than 4 % on the Moscow Exchange after the attacks.
Official Statements & Responses
- Yandex – Said the Vladimir centre “remains in emergency mode” and advised customers to use alternative disaster-recovery sites.
- Governor Alexander Avdeev (Vladimir Region) – Confirmed a fire, damage to two electrical substations serving about 5,000 residents, and an evacuation of nearby buildings.
- President Volodymyr Zelenskyy – Described the Kaluga strike as part of “our tit-for-tat response” to Russian attacks on Ukrainian data centres.
- Ukrainian arms maker Firepoint – Said Kyiv employed FP-1 one-way attack drones to strike Yandex’s “biggest data centre” in Kaluga.
- Maryana Lazaricheva, head of equity research at T-Investments – Warned that continued attacks could eliminate the possibility of load redistribution to other Yandex sites, heightening the risk of severe service disruptions.
On-the-Ground Reports
Users reported that Yandex Go taxis could not be ordered, music streaming stalled, and smart-home assistants responded slowly or not at all. Eyewitness videos showed smoke near the Vladimir facility; independent verification has not been possible.
Conflicting Reports & Gaps
- Injury figures: Regional officials said no casualties, while separate reports from Kaluga mentioned ten injured, five hospitalized.
- Attribution: Ukrainian officials claim responsibility, but Russian authorities have not confirmed the drones’ origin.
Verbatim Quotes
- “The risks involve not only the potential temporary unavailability of Yandex services and lost revenue in specific segments but also the company's extensive base of B2B clients,” — Maryana Lazaricheva, T-Investments.
Why It Matters
The data centres host critical infrastructure for Yandex’s consumer services, AI research (YandexGPT) and cloud offerings used by thousands of Russian businesses. Their disruption illustrates how cyber-physical attacks can cascade into broader economic effects, prompting Yandex to migrate workloads to alternative providers such as Selectel, K2Cloud and VK Cloud, and highlighting the growing strategic importance of digital infrastructure in the Russia-Ukraine conflict.