Air Force
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Russia launches 453-drone overnight attack on Ukraine, one of largest of the conflict
Russian forces struck Ukraine overnight from 18:00 on September 12 with 453 strike UAVs of multiple types, including Shahed and jet-powered variants. Ukrainian air defense reported neutralizing around 405–409 of the incoming drones plus four Banderol missiles, while hits were recorded at 13 locations and falling debris at 7 more.
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Russian ballistic missiles hit Kryvyi Rih metallurgical plant in overnight attack
In the night of September 11–12, 2026, Russian forces struck Kryvyi Rih with ballistic missiles from several directions, hitting the ArcelorMittal Kryvyi Rih metallurgical combine. Local officials reported multiple casualties and damage to nearby apartment buildings, a healthcare centre, and schools. The strike was part of a broader overnight Russian assault on Dnipropetrovsk Oblast and other Ukrainian regions.
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Russia launches nearly 500 strike drones at Ukraine on September 12, Zelensky says campaign targets the economy
On September 12, Russia conducted a sustained day-and-night drone barrage of nearly 500 strike drones against Ukraine, hitting railway infrastructure, food warehouses and other civilian economic targets. Ukrainian air defence downed or suppressed 336 of the 410 drones launched during the daytime period. President Zelensky framed the strikes as a deliberate effort to destroy Ukraine's economy and break Ukrainian resistance.
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Russia strikes Ukraine overnight with Banderol missile and 161 drones; Kyiv residential building hit
Russia attacked Ukraine overnight on September 11 with an S8000 "Banderol" cruise missile and 161 strike drones, including Shahed, Gerbera, and Parodia decoy variants. Ukrainian air defense shot down or suppressed 138 drones, but hits were recorded at 19 locations and debris fell at three more. In Kyiv, a nine-story residential building caught fire and at least seven people were injured.
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Ukraine's air-defense missile stocks nearly exhausted as Russia scales up drone and ballistic missile output
Russia fired jet-powered Geran drones at Ukraine every day in August, with monthly totals rising from 350 in June to 2,800 in August, according to Ukrainian Air Force data cited by the BBC. Ukraine's stockpiles of PAC-3 interceptors for Patriot systems and AIM missiles for F-16s are nearly exhausted, and Kyiv is turning to European SAMP/T batteries and a joint European-Ukrainian project called Freyja to field cheaper, mass-produced alternatives.
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Poland scrambles twice in one day as Russian drones hit western Ukraine
On 10 September, Poland's Operational Command raised the readiness of its air forces twice in response to Russian jet-type drone activity over western Ukraine. Polish fighters, ground-based air defence and radar systems were activated, airspace restrictions were introduced in the east, SMS alerts were sent to residents of two border voivodeships, and flights at Lublin and Rzeszów airports were suspended. No violations of Polish airspace were recorded, and the alerts were cancelled once the threat had passed.
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Russia hits Kyiv with massive missile and drone attack hours after Trump envoys leave
Russia launched a combined missile and drone assault on Kyiv overnight on September 7–8, striking the capital with ballistic and cruise missiles, anti-ship missiles, and 166 strike drones. At least two people were killed, more than 50 civilian objects were damaged across multiple districts, and air defenses downed 175 of the incoming targets. The attack came shortly after US special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner left the city following talks with President Volodymyr Zelensky.
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Zelensky says he expects to meet Trump in late September, with missile defense set as main topic
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on September 8 that he expects to meet US President Donald Trump in the 20s of September, with the supply of American anti-ballistic interceptor missiles as the central item. The announcement came the morning after a massive Russian strike on Kyiv in which most ballistic missiles could not be intercepted, and follows a visit to Kyiv and Moscow by US special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner that yielded a short-lived mutual moratorium on capital strikes.
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Lavrov calls Germany's response to Leipzig drone incident "the beginning of a real war"
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov described Germany's reaction to an attempted drone attack at Leipzig/Halle Airport as "the beginning of a real war," drawing an analogy to pre-World War II diplomatic closures. Germany officially accused Russia on September 1 of orchestrating the incident, closed Russia's last consulate general in Bonn, and terminated the agreement for the "Russian House" in Berlin. Russia retaliated by announcing closures of German Goethe-Institut branches. No one was injured and Ukrainian Antonov aircraft were not damaged, though the An-124's cargo remains disputed.
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Russian strikes on Zaporizhzhia Oblast kill at least one, hit shopping centre over 5–7 September
Russian forces pounded Zaporizhzhia city and dozens of settlements across Zaporizhzhia Oblast on 5–7 September with drones, artillery, MLRS and airstrikes, killing at least one civilian and wounding dozens. A drone strike set a shopping centre on fire during the night of 6–7 September, and a separate drone attack on the city on 6 September killed a 74-year-old man and injured three other people.
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Russia strikes Kyiv and Boryspil airports as US envoys prepare to visit
In the night of September 4–5, Russia launched drone strikes across at least eight Ukrainian regions, with President Zelensky saying the attacks deliberately and for the first time in a long time targeted the Kyiv (Zhuliany) and Boryspil airports. Zelensky linked the airport strikes to discussions about the upcoming visit by US special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner. A drone hit a nine-story residential building in Boryspil, injuring two women, and a strike on an industrial enterprise in Kamianske killed and wounded civilians. Zelensky announced Ukraine would adjust its operations regarding Russian airspace the following week.
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Russian drone strike hits 9-story residential building in Boryspil, two women hospitalized
In the night of September 5, a Russian drone strike damaged a 9-story residential building in Boryspil, Kyiv Oblast, setting fire to the roof and an apartment. Two women were hospitalized with acoustic barotrauma and closed chest trauma. The Kyiv Oblast Military Administration initially reported no casualties before the head of the administration, Timur Tkachenko, confirmed the injuries.
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Russia strikes Ukraine overnight with 167 drones and missiles; passenger train attacked near Kherson
On September 5, Russia launched an overnight attack on Ukraine using ballistic missiles and 167 drones, about half of them jet-powered. Around midday the same day, Russian forces struck a passenger train heading to Kherson with several Shahed-type drones, injuring two people and damaging two diesel locomotives. The overnight attack was the largest in a series of escalating strikes hitting civilian infrastructure.
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Russia hits Ukraine with ballistic missiles and 167 drones overnight; air defence downs 128 UAVs
Russia struck Ukraine overnight on 4–5 September with Iskander-M/KN-23 ballistic missiles and 167 strike and decoy drones launched from multiple Russian and occupied- Crimean sites. As of 08:30 on 5 September, Ukrainian air defence had downed or suppressed 128 drones. Hits were recorded at 23 locations, with casualties reported in Dnipropetrovsk, Kyiv and Mykolaiv oblasts.
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Colonel Oleksandr Dmukhovskyi named commander of Ukraine's "small" air defence forces
Ukraine's Air Force has appointed Colonel Oleksandr Dmukhovskyi to head its "small" air defence command, the service's spokesperson said on 5 September. The appointment comes as Russia has sharply scaled up its use of jet-powered attack drones, rising from roughly 350 in June to over 2,800 in August.
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Russia pounds Ukraine with missiles and over 120 drones overnight; strikes kill civilians and two police officers
In the night of September 3–4, Russia launched a large-scale aerial attack on Ukraine using a Kh-31 guided missile and 121 drones, about half of them jet-powered. Ukrainian air defenses reported intercepting most of the incoming weapons, but strikes hit multiple regions including Kyiv, Odesa, Dnipropetrovsk, Cherkasy, Kharkiv and Zaporizhzhia oblasts, killing at least two civilians and two police officers. A fire at a Rosneft oil depot in Sochi was also reported during the same night.
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Russian drones hit residential building in Zaporizhzhia in overnight attack on multiple oblasts
Russian forces struck Zaporizhzhia with drones overnight on 3–4 September, hitting a multi-storey residential building and starting a fire in two apartments, as part of a broader overnight drone barrage detected across several Ukrainian oblasts. The head of the Zaporizhzhia Oblast Military Administration, Ivan Fedorov, reported the fire and published footage of the aftermath on Telegram. Casualty reporting shifted across the day: initial accounts said no one was hurt in the building strike, while later reports described one woman injured.
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Russian drone strike causes fire at Brovary industrial site, no casualties reported
Russian drone strikes on Kyiv Oblast overnight and into the morning of 4 September 2026 caused a fire at an industrial enterprise in Brovary, damaged warehouse premises and led to a temporary deterioration in air quality, local officials said. No casualties from the attack had been reported as of the time of reporting. The broader overnight barrage involved one Kh-31P guided air missile and 121 strike drones, of which Ukrainian air defense said it destroyed 103.
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Russian strikes hit 13 oblasts overnight; drone strike on Odesa apartment building injures 17, including 3 children
On the night of September 3, Russian attacks caused destruction or damage in 13 Ukrainian oblasts, President Volodymyr Zelensky reported via social media. A drone hit a residential high-rise in Odesa, injuring 17 people including three children, while strikes on Obukhiv and Boryspil districts in Kyiv Oblast sparked a fire at a pharmaceutical warehouse. Zelensky said Russia is continuing to escalate and called on partners to strengthen Ukraine's air defense, including anti-missile and anti-drone systems.
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Ukrainian F-16 pilots running out of air-to-air missiles, resorting to cannons against Russian targets
Ukrainian F-16 pilots are facing an acute shortage of air-to-air missiles during some daytime combat sorties, forcing them to rely on the aircraft's built-in 20mm cannons to engage Russian aerial targets. The commander of Ukraine's 107th Air Wing, known by the callsign "Phantom," confirmed the shortage publicly, warning that "any aircraft without armament is useless," and called for increased deliveries of air-to-air and Patriot interceptor missiles, as well as efforts to boost or localize production.