In the morning of December 29, Russians carried out a mass attack on Ukrainian territory, launching 158 means of air assault. Ukrainian air defense forces destroyed 87 missiles and 27 unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) during the attack. According to the Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Valeriy Zaluzhny, and the Air Force, the Russian forces used various types of missiles and strike UAVs.
"The attackers initially targeted from the northern and southeast directions, moving westward. A total of 36 Shahed-136/131 strike UAVs were recorded."
Later, around 03:00, the enemy deployed Tu-95MS bombers. A total of 18 aircraft took off and reached the launch boundaries around 06:00, launching at least 90 air-launched cruise missiles X-101/X-555/X-55. Additionally, from the Kursk region around 05:00, the enemy used long-range Tu-22M3 bombers, releasing eight Kh-22/Kh-32 cruise missiles towards the northern and central regions.
"At the same time, the occupiers targeted Kharkiv with surface-to-air guided missiles S-300. In total, the enemy launched at least 14 missiles that followed a ballistic trajectory - S-300/S-400/Iskander-M from the occupied Crimea, Kursk, and Belgorod regions of the Russian Federation."
Moreover, at 06:30, the launch of five MiG-31K interceptors was detected, releasing five air-launched ballistic missiles Kh-47M2 "Kinzhal" from the Astrakhan region. Additionally, four anti-radiation missiles Kh-31P and one Kh-59 were used from Su-35 tactical aviation aircraft.
Using the capabilities of the Air Force in coordination with the units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, a total of 114 aerial targets were destroyed, including:
- 27 strike UAVs Shahed-136/131;
- 87 cruise missiles X-101/X-555/X-55.
