Russian forces launched yet another mass aerial attack against Ukraine on Friday morning, June 14, firing ballistic missiles, dozens of drones and Kh-101/Kh-55 missiles from at least five strategic bombers, targeting mostly western regions of Ukraine.
The primary target of the strike was Starokostyantyniv in the Khmelnytsky region, which is widely thought to be home to a vast Ukrainian air base.
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The assault began at approximately 22:40 with the attack by Iranian-made Shahed combat drones, followed by the launch of cruise missiles, and concluded at 04:43.
For the first time since a Russian Tu-22M3 was shot down, the strategic bomber was employed within reach of Ukraine’s air defense systems.
Just over an hour later, at 06:00, Starokostyantyniv was attacked using a Kh-47M2 Kinzhal hypersonic missile.
Ukraine’s Air Force successfully intercepted five out of 7 missiles and 14 out of 17 drones during the assault, with air defenses reacting in the Khmelnytsky, Kyiv, Dnipropetrovsk, Zaporizhia, Mylolaiv, Kharkiv and Odesa regions.
In total, Russian forces attempted 31 aerial strikes, including:
- 10 Kh-101/Kh-555 cruise missiles launched from TU-95MS strategic bombers in the Saratov region of Russia.
- 3 Iskander-M ballistic missiles launched from Crimea and Krasnodar Krai in Russia.
- 1 Kh-47M2 Kinzhal aeroballistic missile launched from the airspace of the Tambov region in Russia.
- 17 Shahed-131/136 attack UAVs launched from Yeisk, Russia.
Ukraine’s Defense Forces employed fighter aircraft, anti-aircraft missile units, mobile fire groups, and electronic warfare equipment to counter the attack.
This attack is already the second one conducted within one week, with the previous one taking place on Wednesday, June 12
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