Ukraine's air defense downs 102 missiles, 42 drones during mass Russian strike
Editor's note: The article was updated with the latest statement by President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Ukrainian air defenses shot down 102 of the 120 missiles and 42 of the 90 drones launched by Russia overnight on Nov. 17, the Air Force reported.
Russian forces launched one of the heaviest aerial strikes against the country throughout the full-scale war, primarily targeting the energy grid.
During the attack, Russia deployed seven Tu-160, 16 Tu-95MS, and two Tu-22M3 bomber planes, five Su-34 fighter-bombers, four Su-27 fighter jets, 10 MiG-31K Kinzhal missile carriers, and four naval missile carriers, according to the Air Force.
Russia reportedly attacked Ukraine with a hypersonic 3M22 Zirkon missile, eight air-launched Kinzhal missiles, 101 Kh-101 and Kalibr cruise missiles, one Iskander-M ballistic missile, four Kh-22/31P missiles, five Kh-59/69 aerial guided missiles, and 90 drones.
The country's air defenses shot down the Zirkon missile, seven Kinzhal missiles, 85 Kh-101 and Kalibr missiles, and all the Kh-22/31P and Kh-59/69 missiles, as well as 42 drones, according to the Air Force.
Forty-one drones were lost across Ukraine thanks to "active countermeasures," while two flew back to Russia and occupied territories, according to the statement.
Air defenses were active nearly all of Ukraine's regions: the Kyiv, Cherkasy, Kirovohrad, Chernihiv, Sumy, Kharkiv, Poltava, Odesa, Mykolaiv, Zaporizhzhia, Dnipropetrovsk, Zhytomyr, Vinnytsia, Khmelnytskyi, Ternopil, Ivano-Frankivsk, Rivne, Volyn and Lviv oblasts.
"We are grateful to our air defense forces involved in the attack, our aviation – F-16, Sukhoi, and MiG pilots – mobile fire groups, electronic warfare units, everybody worked in an organized manner," President Volodymyr Zelensky said.
Ukraine's F-16 fighter jets shot down close to 10 aerial targets on Nov. 17, the president added.
At least seven civilians were killed and at least 19 injured across multiple regions, according to preliminary data.
Chris York
