Air War in Ukraine
Moscow on Fire
Text: Miro Barič
During the previous two months, the Ukrainian Air Force did not lose any aircraft. Unfortunately, that changed during the period under review (June 1–30). Ukraine lost at least three to four aircraft and one helicopter. Several airmen were also killed. Let us first look at these Ukrainian losses.
The first occurred on Tuesday, June 16, at around 7:00 p.m., when a Su-24M frontline bomber crashed near the village of Moskalivka in the Khmelnytskyi region in western Ukraine. The aircraft carried the fuselage number "White 24" and belonged to the 7th Tactical Aviation Brigade. The aircraft had previously been kept in long-term storage and was returned to operational status sometime after the Russian invasion in 2022.
The aircraft crashed during a training flight, killing both crew members. They were Major Bohdan Zahorulko, aged 55, and 23-year-old First Lieutenant Bohdan Babenko. Major Zahorulko was a highly experienced pilot who had previously performed aerobatic demonstrations in an An-32 transport aircraft. After Russia launched its full-scale invasion, he requested to return to the Air Force in a combat role flying Su-24 bombers. He had completed hundreds of combat sorties. First Lieutenant Babenko fulfilled his dream by attending the Kharkiv National University of the Air Force, after which he joined a combat brigade and gained experience from senior aviators. The cause of the crash remains under investigation.
The crash site of the Ukrainian Su-24M bomber, which crashed on June 16.
Major Bohdan Zahorulko, pilot of the crashed Su-24.
Long-Range Shot
Saturday, June 27, can be described as a black day for Ukrainian aviation.
First, footage was released showing Russian drone strikes against the Voznesensk Air Base in the Mykolaiv region. The attack may actually have taken place earlier, but the exact date is unknown. Reports indicate that Geran-4 drones were used.
One Russian drone struck a MiG-29 fighter that was armed with missiles and was being refueled. In addition to the aircraft, a fuel truck and three white vans parked nearby were destroyed by fire. A second drone struck another fuel truck positioned in front of a concrete aircraft shelter. According to some Ukrainian sources, another MiG-29 inside the shelter was either destroyed or damaged.
On the same day that the footage from Voznesensk was released—June 27—a Ukrainian MiG-29 was also lost during a combat mission over the Poltava region. The pilot successfully ejected. Initially, very little information was available about the incident. However, several sources, including Ukrainian ones, later concluded that the aircraft had been shot down by a Russian Su-35 fighter.
The reported engagement occurred at an exceptionally long range—potentially the longest air-to-air kill in history if confirmed. The Russian R-37M missile is said to have struck the Ukrainian fighter at a distance of 190 kilometers (118 miles).
The Ukrainian publication Defence Express notes that reports of Ukrainian aircraft being shot down by R-37M missiles at long range have existed since 2022, with some claims suggesting distances exceeding 200 kilometers, although those reports have never been confirmed.
The Su-35 itself cannot achieve such an engagement using only its onboard radar, whose detection range is shorter than the missile's maximum range. According to Defence Express, the aircraft therefore relied on targeting data provided either by an A-50U airborne early warning and control aircraft or by ground-based air-defense radars.
More recently, Su-57 fighters have also served as "mini-AWACS" platforms for Su-35s because they carry more powerful radar systems. Which of these methods was used in this particular long-range engagement against the Ukrainian MiG-29 remains unknown.
The final Ukrainian aviation loss occurred on Tuesday, June 30, when a Mi-8 helicopter from the 16th Independent Army Aviation Brigade crashed near the village of Starytskivka in the Poltava region. The helicopter was conducting a combat mission against Russian drones. All four crew members were killed: Major Valentyn Mukshinov, Captain Yurii Voron, First Lieutenant Bohdan Khmil, Junior Sergeant Mykhailo Deryaha.
A Ukrainian MiG-29 burning at Voznesensk Air Base.
Training exercises involving Ukrainian Mi-8 helicopters.
Russian Losses
During the period under review, the Russian Air Force also suffered losses of the aviation equipment—losses that were at least as numerous as those suffered by Ukraine.
The first Russian loss occurred on Monday, June 15, when a Tu-22M3 strategic bomber crashed near the Angara River close to the town of Svirsk in Russia's Irkutsk Region. The aircraft most likely belonged to the 200th Heavy Bomber Aviation Regiment based at Belaya Air Base, approximately 25 km (16 miles) from the crash site. According to preliminary reports, one of the aircraft's engines failed during a training flight. The crew successfully ejected before the bomber plunged almost vertically into the ground and was destroyed by fire. All four crew members survived without injury.
The crash of the Russian Tu-22M3 bomber, which went down on June 15.
Since April 2024, this marks the fourth Tu-22 lost in an accident. The intensive wartime use of the aircraft, reduced maintenance standards, and increased wear and tear have all contributed to these losses. Combined with the Tu-22s destroyed during Ukraine's Operation Spiderweb exactly one year earlier, this likely leaves the Russian Air Force with fewer than ten bombers of this type still operational.
On Tuesday, June 23, Ukrainian drones attacked three Russian Orion long-range combat drones at Kerch Airfield in occupied Crimea. At least one Orion drone was confirmed destroyed, while the fate of the other two has not been confirmed.
A Ukrainian strike on Russian Orion drones on June 23.
Between Sunday, June 14, and Monday, June 29, Hvardiiske (Gvardeyskoye) Air Base in Crimea was struck several times. Satellite imagery recorded multiple fires at the base. At least three concrete aircraft shelters were hit, and one of them appears to have sustained severe damage. However, it is unknown what equipment was inside the shelters.
It is known, however, that during the night of June 25–26, a Russian MiG-29 fighter was struck by a Ukrainian drone at Belbek Air Base in Crimea. It was most likely a MiG-29K belonging to Russian Naval Aviation.
An Ukrainian drone struck a Russian MiG-29K during the night of June 25–26.
A Russian Mi-8 helicopter was also hit while on the ground. The attack reportedly occurred sometime in June at a forward operating airfield near the front line, although footage of the strike was not released until several days later.
Finally, it is worth mentioning a Russian Mi-2 helicopter that crashed on Wednesday, June 24, in the Kuban region near Ukraine. In this case, it was a civilian helicopter that crashed while conducting agricultural work.
Attack on a Russian Mi-8 helicopter at a forward operating air base.
Fuel Crisis
During the period under review, Ukrainian attacks against Russia's oil infrastructure intensified. At the same time, Ukraine expanded its campaign against Russian logistics supplying occupied Crimea.
Ukrainian drones targeted trucks traveling along the land corridor to the occupied peninsula, attacked ferries in the Sea of Azov, and destroyed bridges on both roads and railways leading to Crimea. These attacks created serious supply problems on the peninsula and forced restrictions on fuel sales. At gas stations, motorists queued for several kilometers in an attempt to obtain increasingly scarce gasoline.
The campaign against Russian logistics had already begun at the end of 2025, and the following figures illustrate its growing intensity: January: 4,021 Russian vehicles destroyed in occupied Ukrainian territory; February: 4,071; March: 6,068; April: 6,431; May: 8,612; June: more than 10,000 vehicles destroyed.
These are Ukrainian figures, which cannot be independently verified. Nevertheless, analysts working with publicly available imagery have also documented a sharply increasing trend in Russian vehicle losses over recent months. Russia, of course, could not ignore these attacks. Russian forces began escorting military transport vehicles with mobile fire support groups, typically consisting of vehicles equipped with machine guns intended to shoot down drones. The tactic proved ineffective. Ukrainian drone operators not only began destroying these escort vehicles as well, but the presence of an armed escort also signaled that a convoy was carrying something valuable, prompting them to concentrate even more heavily on destroying it. One example occurred on Thursday, June 11, near Armyansk, where part of a convoy of 50 trucks carrying fuel and ammunition was destroyed.
Ukraine also began employing naval drones for such attacks. These unmanned surface vessels approach the Crimean coastline, launch FPV attack drones, and allow them to strike Russian logistics and air defenses from unexpected directions.
At the same time, strikes against oil refineries across Russia reduced refining capacity, allowing the fuel shortage to spread into additional regions. Among the facilities hit were the Afipsky, Slavyansk, and Yaroslavl refineries, two separate refineries in Tatarstan—located approximately 1,100 km (680 miles) from Ukraine—and the Tyumen refinery, which was attacked twice.
Other targets included the Feodosia oil terminal, the Vtorovo pumping station, fuel storage depots, and numerous other elements of Russia's petroleum infrastructure.
Long queues begin forming at gas stations across Russia.
St. Petersburg and Moscow
Of all the Ukrainian strikes during the period under review, two deserve a closer look. The first took place on Wednesday, June 3, coinciding with the opening of the annual St. Petersburg International Economic Forum. This year's slogan was "St. Petersburg, the Capital of Drone Technologies." The opening was indeed marked by drones—but Ukrainian ones. Among the targets hit were a fuel storage facility and the corvette Boykiy, which was undergoing maintenance in a dry dock at the Kronstadt Naval Base. Thick black smoke from multiple fires rose over the city, and footage circulated worldwide showing a Russian police officer on the waterfront unsuccessfully attempting to shoot down a Ukrainian drone with an assault rifle while burning fuel tanks blazed behind him.
A Russian police officer fires a rifle at Ukrainian drones in St. Petersburg.
In the middle of the month, Ukraine launched an attack on Moscow, with its primary target being the Kapotnya oil refinery, located approximately 15 km (9 miles) from the Kremlin. The refinery was attacked twice in succession. The first strike caused significant damage, but it was the second attack, on Thursday, June 18, that reportedly put the refinery completely out of operation. Images of the strike quickly gained worldwide attention.
According to Russian sources, Ukraine launched as many as 990 unmanned aerial vehicles, making it the largest drone attack carried out by either side since the beginning of the war. June also became the first month in which Ukraine launched more drones overall than Russia. Footage from the Moscow attack identified several Ukrainian drone types, including the FP-1, Bars, Liutyi, Morok, and Sichen. The Sichen is derived from the Begemot drone but carries a smaller warhead—40 kg instead of 75 kg—while offering a greater range of 1,400 km (870 miles) at a cruising speed of 200 km/h (124 mph). Several cruise missiles were also reportedly used in the attack. Videos show numerous drones striking the upper floors of apartment buildings. In many cases, however, these appear to be the same buildings filmed from different angles. It is also unclear whether some of the drones had already been hit by Russian air defenses before impact. One well-known video shows a drone being struck directly by a missile, causing one of its wings to break off. The drone immediately enters a spin and crashes—directly into the refinery—triggering a massive explosion.
The Kapotnya oil refinery in Moscow engulfed in flames.16Russian forces install air defense systems on apartment buildings.
Overall, however, Russian air defenses performed poorly during the attack. Multiple videos show the smoke trails of Pantsir air-defense missiles missing their targets. Even the most famous image from the attack resulted from a failed Russian interception: a missile missed the incoming drone and instead struck a fuel storage tank, causing it to explode and sending its roof flying into the air.
Other footage shows groups of soldiers attempting to shoot down drones with small arms while standing on roads in the middle of moving traffic. That day, Moscow was shrouded in smoke from numerous fires. The Kapotnya refinery sustained multiple direct hits and is expected to remain out of operation at least until 2027. According to Russian sources, 17 people were injured across Moscow during the attack. Following the strike, Russian authorities began installing Pantsir air-defense systems on the roofs of apartment buildings—a move that, according to the author, turns those buildings into legitimate military targets.
Russian forces install air defense systems on apartment buildings.
Russia throws every weapon it has against Ukrainian drones—but without success.
The Highest Civilian Death Toll in Four Years
Following the attack on its capital, Russia threatened a massive retaliation.
The question is how Russia intends to further escalate its attacks against Ukrainian civilian targets, which it has been carrying out since the beginning of the invasion.
Even before the Moscow strike, Russia had already conducted a series of large-scale air attacks, as in previous reporting periods.
On Tuesday, June 2, Russia launched 729 aerial weapons—including drones, missiles, and rockets—against Kyiv, Dnipro, Kharkiv, and other cities. Ukrainian air defenses intercepted 642 of them.
The attack killed at least 23 people and injured more than 120.
Another major strike followed on Monday, June 15, when Russia launched 681 projectiles, of which Ukrainian air defenses intercepted 632.
In Kharkiv, four firefighters were killed that day in a Russian double-tap strike. This means Russia deliberately attacked the same location a second time in order to hit emergency responders arriving after the initial strike.
Overall, at least 293 Ukrainian civilians were killed in June, while 1,990 were injured.
This represents the highest civilian casualty toll since April 2022.
The author notes that these are not figures from "Ukrainian propaganda," but casualty numbers confirmed by the United Nations. The actual number of civilian casualties caused by Russian attacks may be even higher.
Assistance from the Czech Republic
At the end of the reporting period, Ukraine received ten Czech-built Alto NG ultralight aircraft, which will be used for the basic training of Ukrainian pilots.
The aircraft are manufactured by Direct Fly, based in the town of Hluk, near Uherské Hradiště in the Czech Republic.
Five aircraft were supplied with financial support from the Czech government, while the remaining five were funded through public donations collected by the "Gift for Putin" (Dárek pro Putina) initiative. The fundraising campaign had been underway since August of the previous year.
The Alto NG is a two-seat ultralight aircraft with a maximum takeoff weight of 600 kg (1,323 lb).
It features: Length: 6.3 m (20.7 ft); Wingspan: 8.2 m (26.9 ft); The aircraft is powered by a 100-horsepower Rotax 912 ULS engine, giving it Maximum speed: 260 km/h (162 mph); Typical cruising speed: 180 km/h (112 mph).
A Czech-built Alto NG aircraft destined for Ukraine.
A former Czech Mi-24 helicopter undergoing an engine overhaul.
Launch of an Ukrainian drone.
At the end of June, Ukrainian Flamingo cruise missiles destroyed the main production workshop of the Titan-Barrikady plant, where components for Russian ballistic missiles were manufactured.
An Ukrainian Black Hawk helicopter in action.