Air Force: Ukraine downs 29 of 36 Russian aerial targets overnight
Ukrainian air defenses downed 15 missiles and 14 Shahed-type drones during a Russian attack overnight on April 19, reported Ukrainian Air Force commander Mykola Oleschuk.
Russia launched a total of 36 missiles and drones overnight, targeting Ukraine's Dnipropetrovsk and Odesa oblasts.
Russian missiles targeted residential buildings and civilian infrastructure in the cities of Dnipro, Kryvyi Rih, and Synelnykove in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast in the morning, killing at least eight civilians, including two children, and injuring over 30 other people.
According to the Air Force's report, 11 Kh-59/Kh-69 guided cruise missiles, and two Kh-101/Kh-555 cruise missiles were downed by Ukrainian forces.
Ukraine was also able to destroy two Kh-22 anti-ship missiles and a Tu-22M3 long-range strategic bomber during a combat mission for the first time since Russia's full-scale invasion, Oleschchuk said.
Russian troops used in total 14 Shahed-type drones, 12 Kh-59/Kh-69 guided cruise missiles, six Kh-22 cruise missiles, two Kh-101/Kh-555 cruise missiles and two Iskander-K cruise missiles
The drones were reportedly launched from the direction of Primorsko-Akhtarsk in Russia's Krasnodar Krai and Kursk Oblast, while the missiles were carried out from Ryazan, Kursk Oblast, the Azov and Black seas, and occupied Crimea.
Stocks of air defense in Ukraine are low across the country as U.S. military aid funding for Ukraine continues to be held up in Congress. In the meantime, Russia has stepped up targeted attacks on Ukraine's energy infrastructure, overwhelming local air defenses and destroying some of Ukraine's largest coal-fired power stations.
