The air forces of several NATO states were scrambled overnight to protect the airspace of the alliance along its eastern border as Russia launched one of its deadliest air strikes against Ukraine’s western regions of the war so far.
Polish, Romanian, German, Spanish, Norwegian, and Dutch fighter jets were scrambled in two deployments in airspace bordering Ukraine over Poland and Romania and the Russian armed forces hammered western Ukraine. According to Kyiv, Russia launched 476 drones, 47 cruise missiles and one ballistic missiles in strikes across the country, but particularly on Western cities Ternopil and Lviv.
At least 20 people have been found dead in Ternopil, which is approximately 225 miles west of Ukrainian capital Kyiv and 110 miles short of the Polish border. Of the killed, at least two are children, and a further 66 were wounded including 16 children in the strikes which badly damaged two apartment blocks.
Ukraine said it scrambled its own Western-built jet fighters including U.S.-made F-16s and French Mirage-2000 jets to shoot down Russian missiles. In all, Kyiv said 41 cruise missiles were shot down, 10 of them by Western-supplied Ukraine Air Force jets.
The BBC notes the unusually large and deadly Russian air raid came one day after Ukraine said it had used U.S.-made ATACMS missiles against targets inside Russia, the first time this has happened under the Trump Presidency.
The Operational Command of the Polish Armed Forces (DORSZ) in Warsaw, Poland said it scrambled NATO jets overnight to protect the alliance’s airspace. Although exactly how many jets were deployed was not revealed, it was stated there were more than one “duty pair” of jets scrambled as well as an Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) radar plane to watch the skies.
To give the fighters clear skies, civilian air traffic was redirected and two airports in Rzeszów and Lublin were temporarily closed.
In an update after the defensive mission completed, they confirmed no Russian drones or missiles were detected having entered Polish airspace, and DORSZ expressed thanks to the Royal Norwegian Airforce, Spanish Air Force, Royal Netherlands Air Force aircraft, and the German army’s missile defence systems which all “helped ensure safety in Polish skies today”.
Meanwhile Ukraine’s southern neighbour Romania — also a NATO member — also launched an air patrol mission in response to the massive Russian air raid. Romanian F-16 and German Eurofighter jet pairs were scrambled to monitor what the Ministry of Defence said was a Russian drone which briefly entered Romanian airspace, then crossed into Ukrainian and Moldovan territory, before entering Romania again.
The drone is believed to have crashed, although it is not clear where.
Responding to the airstrike overnight, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky said: ““Every brazen attack against ordinary life proves that the pressure on Russia is still insufficient. Effective sanctions and assistance for Ukraine can change this. The top priority is air defense missiles, additional systems, expanded capabilities for our combat aviation, and drone production to protect lives.”
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