The attack followed a combined strike involving ballistic and cruise missiles, as well as attack UAVs. In total, russia deployed 999 drones throughout the day, including Shahed-type systems and their variants.
In the Kyiv region alone, approximately 250 drones were launched. A year ago, such a number could have represented a large-scale attack across the entire country. This time, all of them were destroyed within a single region. No aerial targets were detected over Kyiv itself, with only flocks of birds observed in the sky.
Read more: Ukrainian Intelligence Destroys Bastion Launcher and Zircon Missiles in Crimea Strike (Video)
As noted by Ukraine's Ministry of Defense, russia continues to vary altitude and speed profiles while employing different types of weapons in an attempt to overwhelm air defense systems.
"russia uses different types of attack assets at varying altitudes and speeds to overload air defense," the ministry stated.
In response, Ukraine is building a layered air defense system based on a comprehensive, system-level approach. Air defense operations involve all available assets, including Air Force units, interceptor drones, mobile fire groups, tactical aviation, and helicopters.
"Ukraine is conducting large-scale, integrated air operations that are unprecedented globally," the Ministry of Defense emphasized.
The effectiveness of this approach is already evident in major cities, which had previously been the primary targets of russian strikes. Facing limited ability to penetrate defenses, russia is increasingly shifting its focus toward civilian infrastructure in western regions of Ukraine.
At the same time, Ukraine continues to develop a new line of air defense aimed at minimizing threats to cities in the west of the country.
"Ukraine's Defense Ministry is consistently working to strengthen the protection of the sky. Building a highly effective system takes time, but its results are already visible.
russian forces are also adapting to these changes. During the March 24 attack, they attempted to employ the maximum available resources in an effort to break through Ukrainian defenses.
Despite this, Ukrainian air defense units continue to carry out complex missions around the clock, demonstrating steadily increasing effectiveness," the ministry noted.
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