Ukraine says Russia launched missile and about 121 drones overnight; air defences shot down 103

Ukraine said Thursday that Russia carried out a large overnight air attack combining a guided missile with more than 120 drones and decoys, with Ukrainian air defenses neutralizing 103 aerial targets but still recording strikes at 15 locations.

In a statement posted Sept. 4 on the official Telegram channel of Ukraine’s Air Force, the military said the attack began at 6 p.m. on Sept. 3 and continued overnight into the morning. According to the statement, Russia launched one Kh-31P guided air-launched missile from the Black Sea and about 121 strike drones and one-way attack UAVs. Ukraine said the mix included Shahed-type drones, Gerbera drones, Parodiya-type decoys and S8000 “Banderol” munitions. As of 9:30 a.m., the military said the attack was still ongoing and that hostile drones remained in Ukrainian airspace.

Ukraine’s Air Force said the drones were launched from Millerovo, Orel and Kursk in Russia, as well as from occupied parts of the Donetsk region and from Hvardiyske in occupied Crimea. “As of 09:30, air defence systems had shot down or jammed 103 Russian Shahed- and Gerbera-type drones, UAVs of other types and S8000 Banderol drones in the north, south, east and centre of the country,” the statement said, according to Interfax-Ukraine. The military said the attack was countered by aviation, anti-aircraft missile troops, electronic warfare units, unmanned systems units and mobile fire groups.

The Ukrainian military also said “hits from enemy air attack weapons have been recorded at 15 locations, and falling debris from downed targets has been recorded at 6 locations,” again according to Interfax-Ukraine. No consolidated casualty toll or detailed damage breakdown for those sites was available in the initial reporting. The figures were preliminary claims by the Ukrainian military and had not been independently verified in open sources at the time of reporting. Interfax-Ukraine, Ukrainska Pravda and Ukrinform all reproduced the statement. No corresponding confirmation from Russia’s Defense Ministry was immediately available.

Russia has repeatedly used mixed waves of attack drones and decoys in long-range strikes on Ukraine since 2022, a tactic analysts say is intended to stretch air defenses and improve the chances that some weapons get through. The S8000 Banderol, cited in the Ukrainian statement, is a newer Russian loitering or cruise munition that recent reporting has described as faster and cheaper than Shahed-type propeller drones. The Kh-31P is a Russian air-launched anti-radiation missile designed to home in on radar emissions.