In the early hours of 22 September, Russian forces launched a massive drone attack on Ukraine, with the Ukrainian Air Force reporting that 80 Shahed-type drones were launched from Yeysk and Kursk in Russia. Additionally, two Kh-59/69 guided air-launched missiles were fired from the temporarily occupied territory of Luhansk Oblast.
Ukraine’s air defense systems were active in 10 oblasts, including Khmelnytskyi, Vinnytsia, Cherkasy, Kirovohrad, Zhytomyr, Kyiv, Sumy, Poltava, Kherson, and Mykolaiv. The Ukrainian Air Force, air defense units, mobile fire groups, and electronic warfare units of the Defense Forces were involved in repelling the attack.
According to the Air Force,
“As a result of the air defense battle, 71 attack UAVs were shot down, and another six drones were locationally lost due to electronic warfare countermeasures.”
The term “locationally lost” suggests that these drones disappeared from radars and likely crashed. With 71 downed and 6 crashed drones, at least three appear to have reached their targets.
In Poltava Oblast, the attack resulted in damage to energy infrastructure. Filip Pronin, head of the Poltava Oblast Military Administration, reported that 56 household and 30 commercial consumers were left without electricity. Energy workers are currently working to restore power supply.
In Khmelnytskyi, a three-story residential building was damaged. Serhii Tiurin, head of the Khmelnytskyi Oblast Military Administration, stated that the building’s roof was damaged and windows were blown out.
Despite the extensive attack, there have been no reports of casualties or injuries in the affected areas.
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