Night-time attack on Ukraine: air defence forces have shot down hundreds of drones and missiles
On the night of 14 March, Russian forces launched a combined strike against critical infrastructure in Ukraine, using various types of missiles and attack drones. The attack began at 18:00 on 13 March.
According to the Ukrainian Air Force (UAF), radio-technical units recorded 498 air attack assets used by the enemy during this attack.
These included:
- 2 “Zircon” anti-ship missiles, launched from the temporarily occupied territory of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea;
- 13 Iskander-M / S-400 ballistic missiles, launched from the Bryansk Oblast of the Russian Federation;
- 25 Kalibr cruise missiles, launched from the waters of the Black and Caspian Seas;
- 24 Kh-101 cruise missiles, launched from the Vologda Oblast of the Russian Federation;
- 4 X-59/69 guided air-to-surface missiles, launched from the Kursk Oblast of the Russian Federation and the temporarily occupied part of the Donetsk Oblast;
- 430 attack drones, including Shahed, Gerbera, Italmas and other models.
The drones were launched from the territories of Bryansk, Kursk, Orel, Shatalovo, Millerovo and Primorsko-Akhtarsk (Russian Federation), as well as from the Gvardeisky and Chauda districts in the temporarily occupied territory of Crimea. Approximately 250 of them were Shahed-type drones.
According to military sources, the main target of the strike was the Kyiv region.
The air attack was repelled by aviation, anti-aircraft missile units, mobile fire groups, as well as electronic warfare (EW) units and unmanned systems of the Ukrainian Defence Forces.
According to preliminary data as of 09:00, Ukrainian air defence forces destroyed or neutralised 460 aerial targets, including:
- 1 Zircon anti-ship missile;
- 7 Iskander-M / S-400 ballistic missiles;
- 25 Kalibr cruise missiles;
- 24 Kh-101 cruise missiles;
- 1 X-59/69 guided air-to-ground missile;
- 402 drones of various types.
At the same time, six missiles and 28 attack drones were recorded as having struck 11 locations. In addition, debris from downed drones fell at seven locations. The Air Force noted that details regarding four missiles fired during the attack are still being clarified.
