Over 90 Molniya drones shot down in Kharkiv region over past week, regional chief says

Oleh Syniehubov, Head of the Kharkiv Regional Military Administration, reported this during a joint briefing with Minister of Internal Affairs Ihor Klymenko, according to an Ukrinform correspondent.

“Over the past week, 90 Molniyas were shot down by our military. Those that reach Kharkiv are really isolated cases, but all of them pose a threat. We must respond to every air-raid alert,” Syniehubov said.

Some of these drones may have been carriers of FPV drones, but it is not always possible to determine this.

“When a Molniya is destroyed, including on the line of contact, identifying it each time is quite difficult,” Syniehubov explained.

The officials also commented on the use of modified guided aerial bombs (GABs) capable of flying more than 100 km. Such a weapon struck the town of Lozova in Kharkiv region on October 18. So far, this has been the only case in the region.

“The GAB flew over 126 kilometers — it was a UMPB-5R. First of all, we need to react (to the alerts — ed.). Next, our task is to strengthen air defense: either electronic warfare — and we are working on this — or physical destruction — and we are working on that as well,” the regional governor said.

According to Ihor Klymenko, UMPB-5R strikes have been recorded in two regions, and experts from the police and the Security Service of Ukraine are studying the characteristics of this munition, as well as the jet-powered Shahed drones.

“As far as I know, this concerned Dnipropetrovsk and Kharkiv regions. We document the enemy’s war crimes. The use of UMPB-5R is infrequent, but the enemy, of course, continues to improve its capabilities and technical characteristics during the war — and we are improving our air defenses, very carefully studying every instance of the enemy using this type of weapon,” Klymenko said.

Jet-powered Shahed drones are faster and carry a larger payload than the Geran-2, the minister added.

As reported, on October 25 in Kharkiv, two FPV drones delivered by a Molniya drone struck the city. Five people suffered acute stress reactions, and windows in buildings were damaged.

Photo: Tetiana Fedorkova