Russia strikes Kyiv with unusual missiles: Ukrainian Air Force reveals new tactic
Photo: Yurii Ihnat (Getty Images)
During a massive overnight attack on Kyiv on January 24, Russian forces used Kh-22/Kh-32 cruise missiles that have been rarely employed in recent months. The missiles were launched from Tu-22M3 strategic bombers.
This was reported by Yuriy Ihnat, head of the communications department of the Ukrainian Air Force Command, in an interview with Kyiv 24.
According to Ihnat, the enemy launched 12 such missiles at the capital after redeploying strategic aviation closer to Ukraine’s borders.
What is known about Kh-22 missiles
The Kh-22 is a heavy anti-ship missile with a warhead weighing up to 950 kg, originally designed to strike aircraft carrier groups. It can carry various types of warheads and is considered one of the most dangerous missiles in Russia’s arsenal.
Since the start of the full-scale invasion, Russia has used more than 400 Kh-22/Kh-32 missiles against Ukraine, with only three successfully intercepted. However, during the January 24 overnight attack, Ukrainian air defense forces managed to destroy nine of these missiles.
Russia's massive combined strike
On the night of January 24, Russian forces attacked Kyiv and Kharkiv, with destruction and casualties reported in both cities.
According to the Air Force, Russia used 396 aerial attack weapons in the combined strike on Ukraine, including two 3M22 Zircon anti-ship missiles and 12 Kh-22/Kh-32 missiles launched from Russia’s Bryansk region.
"The distinctive feature of this attack was the use of strategic aviation aircraft armed with Kh-22/Kh-32 missiles to strike Ukraine’s capital," the Air Force stressed.
Russia's night attack on Ukraine, January 24
On the night of January 24, the Russian Federation once again carried out a large-scale combined attack on Ukraine, using missiles of various types and attack drones.
Kyiv suffered the most severe damage, with destruction and damage to residential and non-residential buildings recorded in five districts of the capital. One person was killed and at least four others were injured. On the city’s left bank, disruptions to heating and water supply were reported, leaving nearly 6,000 buildings without heat.
In addition, on the morning of January 24, emergency power outages were introduced in several regions of Ukraine due to a complicated situation in the energy system caused by the aftermath of Russian attacks.
According to the military, between 6:00 p.m. on January 23 and the morning of January 24, the enemy carried out a large-scale combined strike on Ukraine using air- and ground-launched missiles, as well as attack drones.
In total, the Air Force’s radio-technical units recorded 396 aerial attack weapons:
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2 3M22 Zircon anti-ship missiles (launched from the temporarily occupied territory of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea);
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12 Kh-22/Kh-32 cruise missiles (launched from airspace over Russia’s Bryansk region);
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6 Iskander-M ballistic missiles/S-300 missiles (launch areas: Bryansk region of Russia and temporarily occupied Crimea);
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1 Kh-59/69 guided air-launched missile (from airspace over Russia's Kursk region);
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375 attack drones of the Shahed, Gerbera, Italmass types and other UAVs launched from Kursk, Orel, Millerovo, Shatalovo, Bryansk (Russia), and temporarily occupied Donetsk. About 250 of them were Shahed drones.
