- Russia launched 498 missiles and drones in a combined overnight strike on Ukraine on March 14, with Ukrainian air defenses destroying or suppressing 460 aerial targets including 58 missiles and 402 drones.
- The attack targeted energy infrastructure across multiple regions including Kyiv, leaving power outages and causing civilian casualties and damage to residential buildings and civilian facilities.
Russia launched a large-scale combined missile and drone strike against Ukraine overnight on March 14, targeting critical infrastructure across several regions of the country.
Ukrainian authorities said the attack began at 18:00 on March 13 and involved nearly 500 aerial weapons, including ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, and hundreds of attack drones.
According to the Ukrainian Air Force, radar units detected a total of 498 aerial attack weapons during the overnight operation.
The barrage included Zircon hypersonic missiles launched from occupied Crimea, Iskander-M and S-400 ballistic missiles launched from Russia’s Bryansk region, Kalibr cruise missiles fired from the Black Sea and Caspian Sea, Kh-101 cruise missiles launched from Russia’s Vologda region, and Kh-59 and Kh-69 guided air-launched missiles launched from Russia’s Kursk region and occupied areas of Donetsk region. The largest portion of the attack consisted of 430 unmanned aerial vehicles, including Shahed drones as well as Gerbera, Italmas, and other types of strike drones launched from multiple directions in Russia and occupied Crimea. Ukrainian officials said roughly 250 of the drones involved in the attack were Shahed systems.
Ukrainian military officials said the primary direction of the strike was the Kyiv region, although multiple regions across the country were targeted. Ukrainian air defenses responded using a layered system that included fighter aviation, surface-to-air missile units, electronic warfare units, drone defense units, and mobile fire groups deployed by Ukraine’s defense forces.
According to preliminary data released by the Ukrainian Air Force as of 09:00, air defense units destroyed or suppressed 460 aerial targets, including both missiles and drones. Ukrainian forces reported intercepting most of the cruise missiles launched during the strike as well as a large portion of the incoming drones. Air defenses destroyed one Zircon missile, seven Iskander-M or S-400 ballistic missiles, all 25 Kalibr cruise missiles that were detected, all 24 Kh-101 cruise missiles, and one guided Kh-59 or Kh-69 missile. Ukrainian units also destroyed or suppressed 402 attack drones of various types during the operation.
Despite the high interception rate, some weapons reached their targets. Ukrainian authorities reported that six missiles and 28 attack drones struck targets at 11 locations. In addition, debris from intercepted drones fell at seven separate locations across the country. Ukrainian officials said the status of four additional missiles remains under clarification as investigators continue to assess the full results of the strike.
The attack caused damage to Ukraine’s energy infrastructure and left consumers without electricity in several regions. According to Ukraine’s Ministry of Energy, Russian strikes disrupted power supply in Kyiv and the surrounding Kyiv region, as well as in Kharkiv, Dnipropetrovsk, Zaporizhzhia, Cherkasy, and Kirovohrad regions.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the attack struck several parts of the country, including Kyiv region, Sumy region, Kharkiv region, Dnipro region, and Mykolaiv region. Emergency services and local authorities continue to work at the affected sites to assess damage and restore critical services.
Zelenskyy said: “The main target for the Russians was the energy infrastructure of the Kyiv region, but unfortunately there were also hits and damage to ordinary houses, schools, and civilian enterprises. At this time it is known that four people have been killed. Many are injured, and people are still seeking medical assistance.”
Russia has repeatedly used large combined barrages of drones and missiles during the war to target Ukraine’s infrastructure and air defense network. Such attacks typically combine large numbers of relatively inexpensive drones with cruise and ballistic missiles launched from different directions. The approach is intended to create multiple simultaneous threats and complicate interception efforts by Ukrainian defenses.