On 11 December, Russia could have fired missiles at Kyiv from Iskander-M or S-400 ground-based air defence systems. This explains why the alert was raised simultaneously with the missiles being shot down in the sky, as it is more difficult to detect a launch from the ground than from an aircraft.
Why was the alarm announced after the explosions in Kyiv
Yuriy Ihnat, a spokesman for the Ukrainian Air Force, said that all the missiles were shot down in the Kyiv region and the capital last night, and the type of missiles was still being determined.
According to him, it is not so easy for specialists of special units documenting Russia's crimes to identify the type of missiles destroyed in the air, because they explode and break into small pieces, which then burn. Then it is easiest to identify by the engines that are in these missiles.
Therefore, it is necessary to wait until the specialists on the ground, primarily the National Police units, are able to identify the targets of the missiles: whether they were ballistic Iskander-M or S-400 anti-aircraft guided missiles, which also hit along the ballistic trajectory," Ihnat said.
The Air Force spokesman reminded that this is not the first time the alarm has been triggered when explosions are already audible. This time, the air defence system worked flawlessly and all targets were destroyed.
The enemy carefully plans its ballistic missile launches. You see this in the south and east all the time. From the Crimea, from the Dzhankoy district, from the occupied territories — the distance is very short, the missile speed is high, sometimes less than a minute of flight before the missile hits, elaborated the spokesman.
What is known about Russia’s night attack on Ukraine
On the night of 11 December, the Russian army again attacked Ukraine with Shahid drones from occupied Crimea and ballistic missiles. Our air defence forces managed to destroy 18 attack UAVs and eight missiles.
In addition, it is emphasised that around 4 a.m. on 11 December, the Russian army fired eight ballistic missiles at the Kyiv region.
As it turned out, the strike came from the north, from the Bryansk region of the aggressor country.
As a result of the fall of Russian missiles, debris fell in some parts of Kyiv, causing injuries and casualties.
According to Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko, four people, all adults, were wounded in Darnytsia district as a result of hostile rocket fire. The medics provided them with assistance on the spot.
A rocket fragment was also found on the territory of a warehouse store in the Darnytskyi district, but no damage was recorded.
In the Mykolaiv region, shrapnel from downed drones damaged agricultural warehouses and agricultural machinery in the Kutsurubska and Snihurivska communities, and private houses in the Ochakivska community.