Firefighters deal with consequences of Russian missile debris falling on Ukraine’s capital Kyiv on 16 May. Photo: State Emergency Service
The Ukrainian Army’s Air Force Command reports that Ukrainian air defenses shot down all 18 Russian air, sea, and land-based missiles of various types, including six ostensibly “hypersonic” Kinzhals, launched in the early hours of 16 May.
According to the Command, the Russians attacked Ukraine from the north, south, and east at about 3:30 a.m, firing six Kh-47M2 Kinzhal aeroballistic missiles from six MiG-31K aircraft, 9 Kalibr cruise missiles from ships in the Black Sea, and three land-based missiles (S-400, Iskander-M).
“Also, overnight into 16 May, the enemy attacked with Shahed-136/131 attack drones and conducted aerial reconnaissance with three operational and tactical level drones, Orlan-10 and SuperCam. All of them were destroyed,” the report reads.
Updates:
It was the 8th air attack on Kyiv since the beginning of May.
“This time, the enemy launched a complex attack from different directions simultaneously, using UAVs, cruise missiles and, probably, ballistic missiles. It was exceptional in its density – the maximum number of attacking missiles in the shortest possible time,” the Kyiv City Military Administration (KMVA) reported early in the morning.
According to KMVA, fragments of the missiles fell in the capital’s five districts, causing the most serious damage in Solomianskyi district, where a non-residential building and several vehicles caught fire. Other affected districts saw minor damage, “in most cases, the debris fell on parked cars, the adjacent territory, or the forest park area.”