Russia Deploys Jet Powered Drones in Sustained Attacks on Kyiv

Russia has shifted its airstrike tactics by deploying jet powered drones in frequent daytime attacks, leaving Kyiv under near constant air raid alerts for five consecutive days. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that approximately 800 jet powered drones were fired into Ukraine over a four day period, noting that these faster weapons now account for more than half of the drones used by Russia. These drones, including the Geran 4 and Geran 5 models, travel at speeds between 200 and 250 mph, which is roughly double the speed of previous piston engine versions. This increase in speed makes them harder to stop with Ukraine's existing low cost interceptors, forcing the military to rely on combat aircraft for shoot downs.

The tactical shift toward near hourly attacks is designed to keep Ukrainian air defenses in constant combat readiness, which analysts say is physically and psychologically taxing. In Kyiv, the frequency of alerts has disrupted public transportation and businesses. Some reports indicate that Russian strikes on warehouses around the capital have led to food shortages in shops, though Ukrainian officials have urged the public not to panic. One particularly deadly strike by a Geran 4 drone hit an ammunition dump in Myla, west of Kyiv, killing 38 people.

Simultaneously, Ukraine has targeted Russian infrastructure, including a Wildberries warehouse in Yekaterinburg located over 1,600 kilometers from the border. In separate developments, sources report that SpaceX CEO Elon Musk remains opposed to allowing Ukraine to use Starlink for strikes inside Russia, despite some media reports suggesting he was open to the idea. Musk reportedly believes that granting such permission would lead to escalation rather than a deal to end the war.