Ukrainian Air Force explains why Russians started launching Shaheds from north
Russia is increasingly launching Shahed drones from the northern direction (Photo:REUTERS/Roman Petushkov)
The Russian invasion forces began to launch Shahed kamikaze drones from the northern direction so that the drone could cover a shorter distance for an attack on the territory of Ukraine, Yuriy Ihnat, spokesman of the Air Force Command, said on the Ukrainian national television on March 5.
He noted that initially the invaders used the south of Ukraine, in particular the Crimea and Kherson Oblast, to launch Iranian-made drones before the de-occupation of the right bank of Kherson. Later, the invaders moved to the eastern coast of the Sea of Azov.
“Unlike the goals they (may have) set for Kyiv Oblast, things are trivial here – the shorter the distance, the less the enemy will fly through the territory of Ukraine, where there are firearms and anti-aircraft missile systems, and mobile fire groups, and fighters that work on these Shaheds.”
“Therefore, on the way to Kyiv, they were destroyed by the Air Command South and East. А now only from the north – a rather short distance. Therefore, it is likely that this method was chosen because of this,” said Ihnat.
On the night of Monday, March 6, Russia released 15 Iranian Shahed drones over the territory of Ukraine. Air defense forces shot down 13 of them.
According to UK intelligence, Russia is launching Iranian drones from the north to further threaten Kyiv. The southwestern part of Russia’s Bryansk Oblast is the closest part of Russian territory to the Ukrainian capital, at just over 200 kilometers away.
From there, Shahed drones, depending on the model, could reach their targets in about an hour to an hour-and-a-half.
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