Ukraine shoots down up to 85% of Russia's jet-powered drones, but there is a major problem
The Ukrainian military is gradually improving its effectiveness in intercepting Russian jet-powered drones. On some days, they manage to destroy up to 85% of such drones. At the same time, the Defense Forces lack the necessary resources to further improve these results.
According to Ignat, when Russia first began actively deploying jet-powered drones in July, the Ukrainian military was shooting down about 40% of such targets. In August, that figure rose to about 60%, and in some recent reports, it reached 85%.
At the same time, Russia is increasing the number of launches. In August, the enemy deployed 2,800 drones, and in September—already more than 3,500.
“The more drones the enemy uses, the more resources we have to devote to intercepting them,” Ignat explained.
He added that the Ukrainian military is gaining experience in combating such targets, so interception effectiveness is increasing. However, the number of available weapons is not increasing.
At the same time, further improvements in air defense effectiveness require additional missiles and ammunition for various ground-based systems and combat aircraft.
How Many Jet-Powered Drones Is Russia Launching?
Russia deploys jet-powered drones both at night and during the day. According to Ignat’s estimate, there are currently about 100 such drones during the day and another 100 or so at night.
However, jet-powered UAVs are not the only type of drone the enemy is using. Russia continues to combine them with conventional “Shaheds.”
Because of this, even a high interception rate does not mean that all targets can be protected from strikes. According to Ignat, drones that reach their targets can cause significant damage.
He explained that even five to ten hits out of every hundred drones launched can have serious consequences.
“The Air Force is doing everything possible to shoot down as many drones as possible. But even five to ten hits a day can cause some damage,” Ignat concluded.
This was reported with reference to a statement by Yuriy Ignat, head of the Communications Department of the Ukrainian Air Force Command, during a televised marathon.
Ignat explained why explosions are sometimes heard before an air raid alert is issued.
In addition, Russian troops destroyed the “Epicenter” shopping center in Dnipro, which had been operating in the city for 19 years. The company made this announcement.
From the morning of October 12 to the morning of October 13, Russian troops carried out more than 40 strikes on the Sumy region. Thirty settlements in 20 territorial communities came under fire, and two people were injured.
As a reminder, Russia attacked a medical facility in the Khmelnytskyi region, injuring four patients.
We should add that Russian forces attacked the Dnipropetrovsk region more than 10 times during the evening and night, resulting in one casualty.
Kharkiv came under attack from Russian “Bandera” missiles, with hits confirmed.
