Ukrainian F-16 pilots destroy nearly all Russian cruise missiles amid overnight attack
Photo: F-16 fighter jets shot down almost all of the Russia's cruise missiles during the night (Getty Images)
During the Russian night attack, Ukrainian F-16 fighter jet pilots shot down almost all of the cruise missiles that Russia launched at Ukraine from strategic aircraft, according to Yurii Ihnat, head of communications for the Ukrainian Air Force Command.
"The air defense system is extremely effective, because although the Kinzhal missiles were not intercepted by Patriot, they did not reach their targets. Of the 35 cruise missiles, 34 were shot down. These missiles were mainly intercepted by F-16 aircraft. We are grateful to our valiant pilots for this," Ihnat says.
He also notes that the military command determines where ground-based air defense systems will operate, where interceptor drones will operate, and where manned aircraft will operate.
"This decision is made extremely quickly — we don't know exactly where the missiles and other aerial vehicles will fly," he adds.
Massive Russian strikes on Ukraine
Russian troops carried out another combined attack on Ukrainian territory at night, using strike drones and various types of missiles. It is known that the enemy used more than 600 drones and dozens of missiles.
In Kyiv, Russian drone debris from a drone fell in the Sviatoshynskyi district. Five people are known to have been injured.
Ukrainian nuclear power plants reduced their generation capacity after the night strike by the Russian Federation; a return to nominal values will be possible after restoration work.
The Russians also attacked DTEK's thermal power plants, damaging the equipment. According to the Ministry of Energy, as a result of the night attack, consumers in the Rivne, Ternopil, and Khmelnytskyi regions were almost completely cut off from electricity by morning.
There are also power outages caused by shelling in Vinnytsia, Chernihiv, Zhytomyr, Donetsk, Dnipropetrovsk, and Kharkiv regions. Emergency repair work will begin as soon as the security situation allows.
