Ukraine’s air defenses shot down all 89 Shahed drones and a Kh-59 guided air missile that Russia launched at Ukraine overnight on Wednesday. The U.S. is to arm Ukraine’s F-16 jets with advanced weapons, the WSJ says. A massive fire breaks out at a Russian factory that manufactures missile components.
Ukraine repels one of largest Russian drone attacks since invasion
Overnight on Wednesday, Russia launched one of the largest drone attacks on Ukraine since the invasion began, mainly targeting the capital Kyiv and the surrounding region, according to Ukrainian Air Force Commander, Lieutenant General Mykola Oleshchuk. It also marks the largest attack on the capital so far this year, Kyiv officials said. An air raid alert was declared in a number of regions and lasted more than seven hours.
Kyiv was the main target of the attack. Thirteen houses close to the capital were damaged by falling debris and rescuers extinguished one fire caused by the downed drones. There were no reports of casualties.
Ukraine’s air defenses shot down all 89 Shahed drones and a Kh-59 guided air missile aimed at Mykolayiv region that Russia launched, Ukraine’s Air Force said.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi lauded the work of the Ukrainian military and pleaded for allies to provide more air defense systems.
“89 ‘Shahed’ drones were shot down last night, all of those used by Russian terrorists during this attack. And this is an important result. Ukrainians can fully protect their skies from Russian strikes when they have sufficient supplies,” Zelenskyi said on X.
“The same level of defense is needed against Russian missiles and the occupier’s combat aircraft. And this can be achieved. We need sufficiently courageous decisions from our partners — enough air defense systems, enough range. And Ukrainians will do everything correctly and precisely,” he added.
U.S. to arm Ukraine’s F-16 jets with advanced weapons, WSJ says
The U.S. has agreed to arm dozens of F-16 jet fighters being sent to Ukraine with American-made missiles and other advanced weapons, addressing a longstanding question about the Western aircraft.
The weapons for the F-16 that the U.S. is sending include AGM-88 HARM air-to-ground missiles; the extended-range versions of Joint Direct Attack Munition kits, which convert unguided bombs to smart weapons; and so-called small diameter bombs that explode with a tight blast radius.
In addition, the U.S. will send advanced medium-range air-to-air missiles, known as AMRAAM, and AIM-9X short-range air-to-air missiles for the jets.
The U.S. and allies have declined to provide specific timelines for the planes and their weapons because of security concerns.
Though the Pentagon has limited inventory and production capability, it will supply the F-16s with air-to-ground munitions, precision-guidance kits for bombs and advanced air-to-air missiles in sufficient quantities to meet Ukraine’s most urgent needs, a senior U.S. official said.
“We are confident that we will be able to supply all of those [weapons], at least the critical volumes that they need,” the U.S. official said.
In Europe, many countries were reluctant to send large amounts of their limited inventory of air-launched munitions to Kyiv, so the allies came up with a solution that the Pentagon has dubbed “jumpstart.” European countries can pool their finances to buy air-launched weapons from the U.S. to send to Ukraine, the U.S. official said.
Ukraine will be flying operational F-16s this summer, U.S. President Joe Biden, Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof, and Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said in a joint statement on July 10.
Kyiv expects to get six F-16s this summer and up to 20 by the end of the year, Bloomberg said earlier this month, citing people familiar with the matter.
Massive fire breaks out at Russian factory that manufactures missile components
A large fire erupted at a Russian factory in Yekaterinburg which produces military and space components, local authorities reported on Tuesday.
The blaze engulfed 800 square meters of NPO Avtomatiki, a subsidiary of Russia’s Roscosmos space agency, before it was extinguished. Local media reported that the roof and walls of the building collapsed and that the fire broke out in a part of the production facility where welding work was being carried out. Chemicals were also reportedly stored there.
The factory is a developer and producer of electronic control systems for missile complexes, and manufactures control systems for Russia’s Soyuz-2 launch vehicles.