On 26 November 2024, Russia launched an unprecedented drone attack against Ukraine, deploying a record 188 unmanned aerial vehicles across multiple regions. The Ukrainian Air Force reported detecting and tracking 192 aerial targets, including 4 Iskander-M ballistic missiles and 188 drones.

The Shaheds explosive drones and unidentified UAVs were launched from multiple directions, including Orel, Bryansk, Kursk, and Primorsko-Akhtarsk regions, targeting critical infrastructure and civilian areas, the report says. Ukrainian air defense systems, including aviation, anti-aircraft missile units, electronic warfare means, and mobile fire groups, were mobilized to repel the attack.

By 09:00, Ukrainian forces had shot down 76 drones across 17 oblasts, including Kyiv, Cherkasy, Kirovohrad, Chernihiv, Sumy, Kharkiv, Poltava, Zhytomyr, Khmelnytskyi, Vinnytsia, Chernivtsi, Ternopil, Rivne, Zaporizhzhia, Dnipropetrovsk, Odesa, and Mykolaiv.

Additional 95 drones were “locationally lost” – meaning crashed “possibly due to active electronic warfare countermeasures,” while five drones were observed moving towards Belarus, according to the Air Force’s report.

Russia has increasingly deployed cheap aerial decoy drones in large numbers to overwhelm Ukrainian air defenses, increasing the likelihood of drones carrying warheads penetrating protected areas. The “locationally lost” drones mentioned in Air Force reports are most likely these decoys.

In Ternopil, the attack damaged the electrical infrastructure. Public broadcaster Suspilne reported multiple explosions around 01:00, with a repeated explosion at 01:47. Mayor Serhii Nadal said the city experienced temporary disruptions to trolleybuses and elevators, though water supply, heating, and public transportation were gradually restored.

Ternopil Oblast Military Administration head Viacheslav Nehoda confirmed that a critical infrastructure object was damaged, but emphasized no human casualties occurred.

In Kyiv, the drone attack lasted five hours, with air raid sirens active throughout the night. The Kyiv City Military Administration reported that over ten enemy drones were destroyed, and preliminary assessments indicated no casualties or injuries.

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