Ukrainian air defense shot down most enemy drones during massive attack
On the night of December 9, Russian forces carried out one of the largest recent attacks on Ukraine using strike drones.
The Ukrainian Air Force reported that from 06:00 p.m. on December 8, the country came under attack by 110 drones of the Shahed, Gerbera, and other types.
The enemy launched drones from multiple directions, including the Russian regions of Bryansk, Oryol, Kursk, Primorsko-Akhtarsk, and Millerovo, as well as from Donetsk and Hvardiyske in the temporarily occupied territory of Crimea.
The main component of this strike was loitering munitions of the Shahed type, totaling about 70 drones. The enemy tried to stretch Ukraine’s air defense system by varying flight routes and drone types. This tactic is designed to complicate the work of Ukrainian air defense crews and increase the chances of some drones reaching their targets.
Various components of Ukraine’s Defense Forces were involved in repelling the air attack, including combat aviation, surface-to-air missile units, electronic warfare units, and drone system units. Mobile fire teams also played a key role, quickly responding to drones and destroying them at low and medium altitudes.
As of 09:00 a.m. , preliminary reports indicate that Ukrainian air defense had shot down or suppressed 84 enemy drones of various types. Destruction was recorded over northern, southern, and eastern regions of Ukraine, demonstrating the wide geographic scope of the attack and the enemy’s attempt to pressure multiple directions simultaneously.
Recall that Russia also attacked Dnipropetrovsk region with drones and artillery, causing damage, and attacked Kherson with drones, injuring two people.
