In a fierce exchange of fire over the weekend, Russia and Ukraine launched a record number of drone attacks against each other. The Russian military on Saturday (November 9) night launched a total of 145 drones, the highest number of attacks in a single night since the outbreak of the war. At the same time, Ukraine on Sunday launched an unprecedented number of drones towards the Russian capital, Moscow.
The Russian Ministry of Defense reported that a total of 34 Ukrainian drones were launched towards Moscow. Between 7 a.m. and 10 a.m. on Sunday, the Russian air defense system shot down all drones over the Moscow area.
This was the largest-scale drone attack launched by Ukraine against Moscow since the outbreak of the war in February 2022, forcing some flights from the three main airports in the Moscow region to divert and causing at least one person to be injured.
According to the Russian military, a total of 70 Ukrainian drones were “intercepted and destroyed”, with “34 in the airspace over Moscow.”
“The (Russian military) foiled the attempt by the Kiev regime to carry out terrorist attacks using aircraft-type drones within the territory of the Russian Federation,” the Russian Ministry of Defense stated.
The Federal Air Transport Agency of the Russian Federation stated that at least 36 flights were diverted from the Domodedovo, Sheremetyevo, and Zhukovsky airports, but later resumed operation. It was reported that one person was injured in the Moscow area.
Debris from the crashed drones caused two houses to catch fire in Ramenskoye. Moscow Region Governor Andrey Vorobyov said a 52-year-old woman was injured by the debris, taken to the hospital with “burns to the face, neck, and hands,” and added that the woman was in critical care.
Meanwhile, Russia also launched a large-scale drone attack on Ukraine.
Ukrainian President Zelenskyy said on Sunday, “Last night, Russia launched a record 145 Shahed and other attack drones towards Ukraine.”
Shahed drones are inexpensive one-way attack drones. The flight path of the drones is programmed to fly independently towards the target area after launch.
Zelenskyy added that Russia used over 800 guided aerial bombs, about 600 attack drones, and nearly 20 various missiles for the attacks this week.
The Ukrainian Air Force command said in a statement that as of 9:30 a.m. local time on Sunday, Ukrainian defense forces had shot down 62 Russian drones.
The statement further said, “67 enemy drones lost their position in various regions of Ukraine, and another 10 Russian drones exited Ukrainian airspace, heading towards Moldova, Belarus, and Russia.”
(This article referenced reports from Reuters and CNN.)