Ukrainian Air Forces demonstrate elimination of Shahed drones
Shaheds shot down in the south of Ukraine (Getty Images)
On the night of December 4, 2023, units of the Kherson Anti-Aircraft Missile Brigade destroyed six Shahed-136/131 drones and a Supercam reconnaissance drone, the South Air Command reports.
The South Air Command releases a video of how enemy air targets were shot down.
Attack on December 4
On the night of December 4, the Russian military attacked the territory of Ukraine with 23 Shahed-136/131 attack UAVs from Cape Chauda in temporarily occupied Crimea and a guided air missile from the airspace of the occupied Kherson region.
Fighter aircraft, anti-aircraft missile units, and mobile fire groups of the Air Force and the Defense Forces of Ukraine were involved in repelling the air attack. As a result of the operation, 18 attack drones and one Kh-59 guided air missile were destroyed.
The danger of Shaheds
As Colonel Yurii Ihnat, the spokesperson of the Air Force Command of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, says in an interview with RBC-Ukraine, Russian Shaheds are a difficult target for fighters, as they fly low and slowly.
"Yes, they are more difficult for fighters to shoot down. But as for other means, we cannot say that they are more difficult to hit than cruise missiles. Both targets are complex. Both targets are designed to overcome air defense systems. It all depends on the circumstances, on the conditions, on the terrain," Ihnat said.
According to UK intelligence, Russia uses kamikaze drones for mass attacks on the territory of Ukraine to weaken the air defense system. One of Russia's goals was likely to weaken Ukraine's air defenses to create a battlespace ahead of any concerted winter campaign of strikes against Ukraine's energy infrastructure.
