For the first time in a long while, Russia struck Kyiv with Kh-22 anti-ship missiles, and air defense systems intercepted 9 out of 12 missiles.
This was reported by Colonel Yuriy Ignat, spokesperson for the Air Forces, on Kyiv 24 TV
“There haven’t been Kh-22 missiles in the reports for a long time. The particular feature of this attack is the use of these missiles… Kh-22 missiles were originally designed to target aircraft carrier groups. They can carry various warheads, and their distinguishing characteristic is a combat weight of 950 kilograms.
Today, the Russian forces launched 12 such missiles at Kyiv (an unprecedented case) from strategic aviation aircraft – Tu-22M3 bombers, which were redeployed from the Far East closer to Ukraine.
Ignat reminded that in 2023, a Kh-22 missile destroyed an entire entrance of a residential building in Dnipro, causing many fatalities. Since then, the Russian forces has used these missiles less on mainland Ukraine, focusing more on southern targets such as oil platforms and Snake Island.
According to the officer, a total of 412 Kh-22 or Kh-32 missiles have been used against Ukraine, and until now, only three had been intercepted.
"Today, air defenses accounted for an additional nine, bringing the total destroyed to 12."
Ignat also noted that such missiles attack along ballistic trajectories, and only Patriot systems can intercept these types of targets.
