Russia launches massive overnight aerial assault on Ukraine with missile and 121 drones

Why it matters

The overnight salvo was a large combined missile-and-drone attack that used about half jet-powered drones — a relatively new and harder-to-intercept type — illustrating the escalating intensity of Russian strikes. Civilians were killed in Odesa and two police officers documenting attack aftermath died in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, underscoring the human cost. Damage to homes, vehicles, warehouses, and an industrial site in Brovary shows the broad civilian and economic toll of nightly Russian aerial attacks.

What happened

Starting from 18:00 on September 3 and continuing through the night of September 4, Russia launched a large-scale aerial assault on Ukraine using a Kh-31 guided aircraft missile and 121 drones, about half of them jet-powered. The Air Force Command had warned of the threat of jet-powered drones before the attack. Ukrainian aviation, anti-aircraft missile troops, electronic warfare and unmanned systems units, and mobile fire groups engaged the incoming targets across the north, south, east, and center of the country. As of 9:30 a.m. on September 4, the Air Force reported 103 enemy UAVs of types Shahed, Herbera, other types, and S8000 'Banderol' destroyed; an earlier overnight tally had cited 101 drones and two additional targets. Hits by enemy weapons were recorded at 15 locations and falling debris from downed targets at 6 locations.

Strikes hit multiple regions. Explosions were heard in Cherkasy during an air-raid alert. In Kyiv, shelling damaged residential buildings, vehicles, and warehouse premises; a non-residential building caught fire in the Solomianskyi district and one person was injured in the Holosiivskyi district. A fire broke out at an industrial enterprise in Brovary, Kyiv Oblast, prompting the mayor to warn residents about spreading smoke. In Odesa, a strike on a densely populated district killed one person and injured three, damaging residential buildings, neighboring structures, and around 28 vehicles; roughly 500 windows were damaged and utility services began covering them with film. First deputy mayor Oleksandr Filatov said apartments on floors 6–8 of the affected building in the Kyivskyi district were damaged. In Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, evening and night strikes on the Bohdaniv community of Pavlohrad district killed two police officers — Captain Oleksandr Hryhorenko, who died at the scene, and Senior Lieutenant Serhii Shmatko, who died in hospital — while another officer was hospitalized in serious condition.

On the ground, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported 240 combat clashes over the previous day, the largest numbers on the Pokrovsk (38) and Kostiantynivka (24) directions, and Ukrainian defense forces eliminated 1,440 Russian personnel and various equipment. Separately, in the Adler district of Sochi, Russia, an oil depot of 'Rosneft-Kubannefteproduct' caught fire during the night, with explosions also reported near an air defense deployment in the area; according to Astra, the blaze followed a probable drone attack.

Where reporting differs

Sources report slightly different overnight tallies of downed targets: one account cites 101 Russian UAVs and two additional targets neutralized during the night, while a later Air Force update as of 9:30 on September 4 reports 103 enemy UAVs destroyed. The totals reflect different reporting moments rather than a contradiction. There is also inconsistency in how one type of target is classified: one article describes 'Banderolei' as Russian missiles, while another identifies them as a Russian drone type (S8000 'Banderol').

Background

Ukraine's Air Force regularly issues overnight tallies of intercepted Russian drones and missiles, describing air defense operations as drawing on aviation, anti-aircraft missile troops, electronic warfare units, unmanned systems units, and mobile fire groups. Russian drone attacks on Ukrainian cities have been a recurring nightly feature of the war, prompting standing air-raid alerts across the country.