Ukraine Pilots Use Cannons as Russia Doubles Jet Drones — SkimNews
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- Yurii Ihnat, head of the Ukrainian Air Force communications department, said pilots are forced to use aircraft cannons against Russian jet-powered drones flying at over 400 km/h due to a shortage of air-to-air missiles.
- Russia escalated drone launches from approximately 1,500 jet-powered drones in July to 2,800 in August, according to Ihnat.
- Ukraine is deploying MiG-29s, U.S.-made F-16s, and French-made Mirage 2000s against drones that fly at roughly twice the speed of older piston-engined Shaheds, which interceptor drones had handled effectively.
- Russian drone strikes on Kyiv's Holosiivskyi district on Sept. 10 injured four people and damaged a gas station; a Sept. 9 attack hit residential buildings, killing one and injuring at least 17, including two children; a Sept. 8 mass strike killed five and injured 35.
- Attacks on Kyiv resumed almost immediately after a brief pause tied to the visit of U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner to the capital.
Why it matters: Ukraine is intercepting faster drones with cannon fire rather than guided missiles — burning aircraft readiness faster while consuming a finite pilot resource. With Russia nearly doubling monthly jet-drone launches from July to August, the missile-supply gap is now dictating how Ukraine defends its skies.
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