Ukraine launches more than 50 drones against Russia in one of its largest air strikes

Ukrainian officials claim they used a barrage of drones to destroy at least six Russian military aircraft and severely damage eight others at an airfield in the Rostov region on the border with Russia.

KYIV, Ukraine — Ukrainian officials claimed Friday that they destroyed at least six military aircraft at an airfield in Russia’s Rostov region with a barrage of drones and severely damaged eight others. Russian defense officials, however, claimed that they captured 44 Ukrainian drones and damaged only one electrical substation in the attack.

The Associated Press could not independently verify either side's claims.

The attack appeared to be one of Kiev's heaviest air strikes of the war, especially as Ukrainian forces stepped up their attacks on Russian territory. Russia has also expanded its attacks on civilian infrastructure, including Ukrainian power plants, in recent weeks, ushering in a new and potentially dangerous phase of the conflict with both sides struggling to make significant progress on the ground.

The overnight attack targeted a military air base near Morozovsk, Russia, and was carried out by the Ukrainian security service in cooperation with the military, Ukrainian intelligence officials told the AP.

As a result, about 20 members of the airport staff were killed or injured. The Morozovsk airfield was used by Russian bombers dropping guided bombs on Ukrainian cities and frontline positions, officials said.

They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the operation.

If the attack is genuine, it would be one of Ukraine's most successful cross-border attacks. Last October, Ukraine claimed to have shot down nine Russian helicopters at two airfields in Russian-occupied territories with long-range ballistic missiles donated by the United States.

In August last year, Ukrainian media, citing unidentified intelligence sources, claimed that drone strikes had hit Russian bombers parked at air bases deep in Russia.

In a contradictory version of events, the Russian Defense Ministry said a total of 44 drones were “captured and destroyed” in the Morozovsky district, more than 100 kilometers from the border. The attack damaged an electrical substation, Rostov Governor Vasily Golubev said, adding that eight people were injured near the airfield.

Usually well-informed Russian military bloggers confirmed an attempted attack by Ukrainian drones on a military airfield in Morozovsk, but claimed there were no casualties at the base and no damage to the fighter jets.

According to the Russian Defense Ministry, nine more drones were intercepted over the border regions of Kursk, Belgorod, Krasnodar and the nearby Saratov region, bringing the total number of attack drones deployed by Ukraine overnight to 53.

Drone warfare is a key feature of the war, now in its third year since Russia fully invaded its neighboring country. Along the 1000-kilometer front line, where fighting has largely come to a standstill, both sides are using low-cost drones to deliver expensive military equipment.

The Kremlin’s forces have used large numbers of Iranian Shahed drones to bomb urban areas in Ukraine. Kiev, on the other hand, has developed a small but rapidly growing defense industry in which drones, including deadly unmanned naval vessels, are proving effective.

Russian authorities have long accused Ukraine of regularly launching drone strikes on power plants, oil refineries and other targets in Russia's western regions near the border. Last month, Ukraine fired a barrage of 35 drones at such targets, according to Russian sources. Some of the strikes reached deep into Russia, including Moscow, and as far as 1200 kilometers east of Ukraine.

However, Ukraine cannot match the size of the Russian military. Over the past week, Moscow has deployed 99 drones and missiles against Ukraine's energy infrastructure and attacked regions across the country.

Meanwhile, the Ukrainian Air Force said it intercepted 13 Russian drones fired at it overnight in the southern regions of Odessa, Zaporizhzhia and Dnipropetrovsk, but five missiles missed. Authorities reported no injuries.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he held a meeting with his top leaders to discuss the production of attack drones and the production of electronic warfare equipment to intercept incoming drones.

He said late Thursday that the meeting had "clear written agreements with manufacturers, clear financing and clear delivery dates."

Authorities will then turn to "powerful and growing" production of missiles, he said, as military support from Western partners is less than Kiev had hoped.

Zelenskyy said an assessment of frontline positions showed that Ukraine had managed to "stabilize our positions" despite being outnumbered by the Russian military.