Russia launched a drone attack on Ukraine from three directions. How many were intercepted by air defense forces?

On the night of January 19, Russian forces launched 61 drones towards Ukraine from three directions. The air defense shot down a significant portion of them.

This is reported by RBK-Ukraine citing the Air Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

"On the night of January 19, the enemy attacked with 61 strike UAVs of the 'Shahed' type and various types of imitation drones from the directions of Millerovo, Bryansk, and Orel," the statement said.

How the Air Defense Performed

The aerial assault was countered by aviation, anti-aircraft missile troops, electronic warfare units, mobile fire groups of the Air Forces, and the Defense Forces of Ukraine.

"As of 09:00, the downing of 43 strike UAVs of the 'Shahed' type and other types of drones has been confirmed," the military reported.

The air defense operated in the Poltava, Sumy, Kharkiv, Cherkasy, Chernihiv, Kyiv, Zhytomyr, Dnipropetrovsk, and Mykolaiv regions.

Additionally, 15 enemy imitation drones were locally lost, while one remains airborne, and combat operations continue.

Russian Shelling of Ukraine

An air raid alert was declared in Ukraine around 22:00 on Saturday, January 18. This was prompted by a ballistic threat. Later, the possibility of drone attacks was added to this threat.

By around midnight on Sunday, January 19, air defense was active in the Kyiv region due to the drone attack. Subsequently, explosions were heard in Kyiv. Air defense continued to operate in the Kyiv region in the morning.