Ukraine's air defense forces shot down 4 missiles and 503 drones on May 18
On the night of May 18, Russian forces launched a combined strike on Ukrainian territory using missiles and drones. The main focus of the attack was on Dnipro and the Dnipropetrovsk region, while the Odesa, Chernihiv, and Zaporizhzhia regions were also targeted.
According to preliminary data, air defense forces destroyed or neutralized 507 aerial targets, including 4 missiles and 503 drones of various types.
On the night of May 18 (starting at 6:00 p.m. on May 17), the enemy launched a combined strike on Ukrainian territory using attack UAVs and ground-based missiles. The main targets of the strike were Dnipro and the Dnipropetrovsk region. The Odesa, Chernihiv, and Zaporizhzhia regions were also attacked.
In total, the Air Force’s electronic warfare units detected 546 air attack assets (22 missiles and 524 UAVs):
- 14 Iskander-M/S-400 ballistic missiles (launch areas: Rostov Oblast, Russian Federation; temporarily occupied territory of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea);
- 8 Iskander-K cruise missiles (launch areas – the temporarily occupied territory of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea);
- 524 Shahed, Gerbera, and Italmas strike UAVs, as well as Parodia decoy drones, from the following locations:
- Bryansk, Kursk, Orel, Millerovo, Primorsko-Akhtarsk – Russian Federation; Donetsk, Gvardeyskoye – temporarily occupied territory of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea.
The air attack was repelled by aviation, anti-aircraft missile forces, electronic warfare and unmanned systems units, and mobile fire groups of the Ukrainian Defense Forces.
According to preliminary data, as of 08:30, air defense forces shot down or neutralized 507 targets—4 missiles and 503 unmanned aerial vehicles of various types:
- 4 Iskander-K cruise missiles;
- 503 enemy UAVs of various types.
Hits by 18 missiles and 16 strike UAVs were recorded at 34 locations, as well as the fall of downed (debris) UAVs at 11 locations. The attack is ongoing, with several enemy UAVs still in the air.
On the night of May 17, a number of Russian military-industrial complex and energy facilities in Moscow and the Moscow region were struck. Strikes were carried out on an oil depot in Durikino, an oil refinery in Kapotnya, the Angstrom microelectronics plant, and the Raduga Design Bureau, which develops cruise missiles.
On the morning of May 16, Moscow also came under attack by drones, causing airports in the Russian capital to temporarily suspend operations.
The “ATESH” partisan movement claimed responsibility for a sabotage operation in the Moscow region, which disrupted the functioning of elements of the Russian air defense system on the outskirts of the capital.
