Moscow comes under drone fire overnight, grounding flights at major airports

Editor's Note: This is a developing story and is being updated.

Dozens of Ukrainian drones targeted Moscow overnight on Oct. 28-29, according to Mayor Sergey Sobyanin.

Russian air defense units shot down nearly 60 drones bound for the capital over a 90-minute period, Sobyanin said. The mayor reported that 57 drones were intercepted in Moscow Oblast between 10:46 p.m. and 12:09 a.m. local time.

Around two hours later, Sobyanin reported that another 15 drones were shot down over Moscow, bringing the total to 72.

The exact number of drones fired at Moscow is not clear, as Russian authorities only report interceptions. No casualties or damage have been reported, and Sobyanin did not indicate any specific targets of the attack.

Emergency services are working at the crash sites, he said.

The Kyiv Independent could not independently verify Sobyanin's claims at the time of publication.

The drone threat has also interrupted air traffic near Moscow.

Russia's Federal Air Transport Agency (Rosaviatsiya) imposed restrictions on flights at three of the region's four major airports: Vnukovo, Domodedovo, and Zhukovsky. While restrictions have been lifted at Zhukovsky, temporary limits are still in place at the ohter two facilities.

Two flights from Istanbul to Moscow turned back due to restrictions at Vnukovo airport, the Russian state news agency TASS reported.

Residents of Moscow Oblast reported a series of explosions near Naro-Fominsk, a town located some 50 kilometers (31 miles) southwest of the capital, according to the independent Russian Telegram channel Astra.

Ukrainian drone strikes have disrupted aviation operations over Moscow multiple times in October.

Flights at all four main airports were grounded during an overnight attack on Oct. 23. Photos later emerged on social media that allegedly showed debris from a downed drone on the tarmac at Sheremetyevo, Moscow's largest airport.

The previous night, Ukraine launched a large-scale drone attack against the region, striking a weapons plant in Moscow Oblast on Oct. 22. Sobyanin claimed that over 600 drones were launched at the region overnight.

Earlier in the month, Sobyanin reported that Moscow Oblast came under the largest drone attack the region had seen in the past two years. Ukraine allegedly fired 650 drones at the region on Oct. 6, causing a fire at a major oil facility.