Russia Launches Over 200 Drones on Ukraine; Kyiv Downs Half

Russian troops launched 208 Shahed-type unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and decoy drones over Ukraine on the evening of Feb. 27 and into the early morning hours of Feb. 28, with about half shot down by air defenses.

According to the Ukrainian Air Force’s Telegram channel, air defense forces successfully destroyed 107 of the drones. The UAVs were launched from Russian cities, including Orel, Bryansk, Kursk, Millerovo, Shatalovo, and Primorsko-Akhtarsk.

The attack faced warplanes, anti-aircraft missile troops, electronic warfare units, and mobile fire groups of the Ukrainian Air Force and and other branches of the Defense Forces.

The Air Force released a video showing soldiers from the Kherson Anti-Aircraft Missile Brigade shooting down a Shahed attack UAV in the southern sector during the assault.

As of 9 a.m., 107 drones were confirmed shot down in regions such as Kharkiv, Kyiv, Poltava, Sumy, Chernihiv, and several others. In addition, 97 decoy drones vanished from the radar without causing further harm.

The regions of Kharkiv, Sumy, Mykolaiv, and Zaporizhzhia were affected during the attack.

According to rescuers, one of the Russian UAVs hit a high-rise building in Zaporizhzhia causing a fire. An 82-year-old woman was injured and hospitalized, and nearby buildings were also damaged.

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In Sumy, Russian forces attacked a residential area, injuring two people. Rescuers quickly assessed the situation and, fearing further strikes, evacuated 40 people, including four children, to a nearby shelter.

Earlier this year, on Feb. 23, Ukraine faced its most massive Russian drone attack. Russian forces launched 267 Shahed loitering munitions, ballistic missiles, and various types of decoy drones at Ukrainian regions.

Col. Yurii Ihnat, Head of Communications for the Ukrainian Air Force Command, pointed out that the Feb. 23 attack involved the largest number of drones used in a single assault since the full-scale war began.

On that record day, Ukrainian air defense units successfully destroyed 138 of the 267 drones, while 119 drones vanished from radar. Three veered toward Russia, and one headed for Belarus.

The Russian bombardment targeted regions including Dnipropetrovsk, Odesa, Poltava, Kyiv, and Zaporizhzhia.