Photo: General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine / Facebook
On the night of 18-19 May, Russia launched a massive attack on Ukraine, using 112 Shahed-type attack drones and imitation drones of various types. The defence forces neutralised 76 UAVs, while another 35 were locally lost or suppressed by electronic warfare.
This was reported by the Ukrainian Air Force in a morning report. The attack began at around 23:00 on 18 May from several directions – Bryansk, Kursk, Orel, Millerovo, and Shatalovo.
Active countermeasures: aviation, air defence and mobile groups
They were involved in repelling the air strike:
- fighter aircraft,
- anti-aircraft missile troops,
- electronic warfare (EW) units,
- mobile fire teams.
According to official information:
41 UAV shot down by fire,
35 – suppressed by electronic warfare or locally lost.
These drones did not carry out direct strikes due to effective defence, according to the Air Force Command.
Consequences of shelling: five regions under attack
The consequences of the night attack were recorded in five regions:
- Kharkiv,
- Sumy,
- Donetsk,
- Cherkasy,
- Kirovohrad.
Local authorities report localised damage to infrastructure and no casualties, but damage assessment is ongoing.
“Massive UAV attacks are becoming a systemic tactic of the enemy. At the same time, our air defence and electronic warfare systems are demonstrating increasing effectiveness,” the Air Force Command said.
