Ukrainian air defence shoots down all 37 Russian attack drones

"On the night of May 19, 2024, the Russian occupiers attacked Ukraine with 37 Shahed-131/136 attack drones. Anti-aircraft missile units of the Air Force, mobile firing groups of the Ukrainian Defense Forces and electronic warfare units repelled the enemy attack," reads the official statement issued by the command of the Ukrainian Air Force.

General Oleshchuk emphasized that this attack was not successful for the Russian forces. Thanks to the coordinated action of the Air Force's anti-aircraft missile units and the mobile shooting groups of the Ukrainian Defense Forces, the attack was repelled. Specialized electronic warfare equipment was also used in the defensive action, significantly contributing to the effectiveness of the operations.

"As a result of the air battle, all 37 drones were shot down in different regions of Ukraine, including Kyiv, Odesa, Mykolaiv, Sumy, Vinnytsia, Zhytomyr, Cherkasy and Kherson," General Oleshchuk summarized the situation.

The commander of the Ukrainian Air Force expressed his appreciation for the effectiveness and determination of the Ukrainian defence units, which did not allow the Russian armed forces to realize their plans.

The Ukrainian army reported on Saturday about shooting down a Russian Su-25 attack aircraft in the Donetsk region. The anti-aircraft defence of the 110th Separate Mechanized Brigade, named after General Marko Bezruchko, downed the aircraft.

"Another enemy Su-25 has been downed! Its remains are smouldering in Donetsk Oblast," the brigade wrote on Facebook.

"Anti-aircraft forces from the 110th Brigade are continuing to punish [Russian aircraft] for illegally crossing the border," it added.

This is the fourth Russian Su-25 aircraft shot down by the brigade's fighters in the past two weeks. The previous one fell to the ground on 13 May.