Airspace over Moscow and Tula closed after claims of drone strikes

Russia closed airspace over Moscow and Tula Oblasts after reports of drone strikes on Aug. 30, Russian state media claimed.

At 1:50 a.m. local time, Russian state news agency TASS reported attempted drone strikes over Bryansk and Oryol Oblasts. The report claimed that air defense units shot down three drones over Bryansk and one over Oryol.

Russia blamed the attempted strikes on Ukraine.

The same night, Russia claimed that drones struck a military airfield in Pskov Oblast, destroying four Il-76 aircraft.

Following the alleged strikes, Russia closed airspace over Moscow and Tula Oblasts.

According to Russian media, Moscow's Vnukovo airport shut down the night of Aug. 30, while flights at Domodedovo and Sheremetyevo airports were delayed.

TASS later announced that Vnukovo airport resumed operations.

On Aug. 29, Russia claimed that air defense units shot down two drones flying over Tula Oblast. Airport closures and reports of drone strikes in the Russian Federation have increased in recent weeks.

As counteroffensive presses forward in southeast, ‘every meter costs a life’

Editor’s note: The Kyiv Independent is not disclosing the soldiers interviewed in the story by their full names due to security concerns amid the ongoing war in Ukraine. The article also contains photos that some readers may find disturbing. DONETSK OBLAST – Twenty-nine-year-old assault company com…

The Kyiv IndependentAsami Terajima