Air Force: Ukraine downs 28 Russian drones, 2 missiles overnight

Dinara Khalilova -

Ukraine’s military shot down 28 out of 31 Shahed drones and two missiles launched by Russia overnight on Dec. 25, the Air Force wrote.

The drones were destroyed in Odesa, Kherson, Mykolaiv, Donetsk, Kirovohrad, and Khmelnytskyi oblasts, according to the Air Force.

Odesa Oblast's air defenses downed 17 of the 28 drones, with debris damaging Odesa's port infrastructure as well as an abandoned administrative building and warehouses in the region's Rozdilnianskyi district, Governor Oleh Kiper reported.

The overnight attack hit warehouses in Kherson Oblast's Beryslav district, causing a fire that has already been extinguished, Ukraine's Southern Defense Forces said on Telegram.

The Khmelnytskyi Oblast Military Administration reported that one of the drones had been downed over the western region, but there were no casualties or damage.

Deadly drone arms race intensifies as Ukraine, Russia embrace the future of war
At this stage of a war that could last years more, both Ukraine and Russia are getting serious with their drone game: ramping up production while always looking to come up with new innovations.
The Kyiv IndependentFrancis Farrell

Authorities in the other three regions haven’t reported on the consequences of the overnight attack.

Apart from the kamikaze drones, Russia launched a Kh-59 missile in the direction of Kropyvnytskyi, the regional capital of Kirovohrad Oblast, and a Kh-31P anti-radar missile toward Chornomorsk, Odesa Oblast, according to the Southern Defense Forces.

The Air Force also confirmed the downing of a Russian Su-30 fighter jet over the Black Sea on Dec. 24. It was unclear earlier if the Ukrainian attack on the aircraft had been successful.

On the same day, Ukrainian forces also downed a Russian Su-34 fighter-bomber jet near the occupied Mariupol in Donetsk Oblast, Air Force Commander Mykola Oleshchuk said on Dec. 24.

Ukraine finally moves to fortify front line, but could it be too little too late?
“If you want to live, dig.” The words, often spoken by Ukrainian troops, are universal advice for trench warfare in general, but especially for both sides in Russia’s war against Ukraine. Normally expressed as advice to the individual soldier, the maxim now applies to the country as a whole.
The Kyiv IndependentFrancis Farrell