Ukraine Seeks To Cripple Moscow's Airports, Make Russians 'Pay', With Drone Swarms

A third consecutive night of air attacks across Russia and Crimea saw the Russian military intercept more than 100 drones sent from Ukraine, Russia’s Defense Ministry said early Friday.

The ministry cited that inbound drone action was seen in the skies of Kursk, Oryol, Tula, Bryansk, Ryazan, Belgorod, Ivanovo, Vladimir, Voronezh and Lipetsk. Dozens were intercepted over many of these territories.

While no fatalities from these overnight attacks emerged, the regional governor of Lipetsk oblast, which lies south of Moscow, said eight bystanders were injured by falling debris after drones were intercepted.

In that instance, the UAVs appeared to be targeting a battery manufacturing facility used by the Russian military. Ukraine has sent hundreds of drones this week against military-industrial bases as well as cities, villages, and residential neighborhoods - even airports.

The Russian Defense Ministry has said 485 Ukrainian drones were intercepted over the past three days, from Monday through Thursday. At least 60 have been downed over Moscow oblast.

Ukraine officials are touting that the new drone strategy is focused on swarming Russia with kamikaze drones in order to destabilize the country by crippling infrastructure and weaking government control, with a focus on airport and travel disruptions.

Already the past week has seen suspension of flights across four major Moscow airports, and at hubs elsewhere in the country. Ukrainian media reports the following:

Ukrainian drones have forced at least 217 temporary airport closures across Russia since Jan. 1, independent Russian outlet Novaya Gazeta Europe reported on May 14, citing data from Russia's state aviation agency Rosaviatsia.

The figure already surpasses the combined total for all of 2023 and 2024, underscoring Kyiv's growing ability to put pressure on Russia, even in areas far from the border with Ukraine.

According to Serhii Bratchuk, spokesperson for the Ukrainian Defense Army's Southern Division, the surge in disruptions reflects a strategic shift in Ukraine's drone campaign.

Bratchuk described that "Moscow is the biggest aviation hub in the Russian Federation — flights go everywhere, not only across Russia, but worldwide," he told the Kyiv Independent.

"This is about the potential disintegration of Russian regions and the weakening of internal control," he laid out. "Aviation is not a cheap industry, and losses are incurred — by airports, by airlines — and it also has a psychological effect on passengers and cargo clients."

The Ukrainian military spokesman continued, "These disruptions are not accidental. They are part of a pressure campaign against logistics, air defense systems, and public morale."

"The Russian population has to pay for this war," the official emphasized. "Sleeping in tents at the airport is not the highest price, but it does affect morale."

But President Putin has responded this week by ordering the Russian Army to begin establishing a buffer zone along the border and inside Ukraine, which looks to including Russia's military expanding into Sumy and other areas. At this point the prospect of US-sponsored peace settlement looks far away in terms of being a practical achievable reality.