Ukraine Air Defense Downs 161 Russian Drones Across Multiple Fronts

On the night of August 3-4, Russia launched a massive aerial attack on Ukraine involving 162 Shahed-type attack drones, various decoy drones, and one Kh-47M2 Kinzhal aeroballistic missile from multiple directions including Russian territory and Crimea. Ukrainian air defense forces successfully shot down or suppressed 161 of these drones across northern, southern, eastern, and central regions, with only one drone impact recorded causing debris damage in nine locations in the Odesa and Kyiv oblasts. The defense response included aviation, surface-to-air missile units, electronic warfare, unmanned systems, and mobile fire groups. Ukrainian air raid alerts were declared multiple times following the launch of Russian MiG-31K jets and Kinzhal missile strikes in Khmelnytskyi Oblast. The Institute for the Study of War noted that Russia is expanding the area around the seized Donetsk airport to facilitate further drone attacks. These events underscore the ongoing intense conflict and Ukraine's efforts to repel large-scale Russian air assaults.