Ukrainian Air Defense forces claim to have shot down 5 Russian cruise missiles, presumed to be the highly agile and long range KH-555 for the first time since the war began.
Serhii Borzov, head of the Vinnytsia regional military administration exclaimed after the shooting, “We are closing the sky with our own forces,” he said referring to the Ukrainian government’s plea to NATO to close the skies over Ukraine which has been denied so far.
Three enemy cruise missiles were shot down over the Vinnytsia region according to Borzov. Two more Russian missiles were brought down over the city of Lviv said Serhii Bratchuk, the spokesman of the Odesa Regional Military Administration, as quoted in the Ukrainian military’s Facebook and Telegram channels.
Russian military have launched six cruise missiles, presumably Kh-555, from the Black Sea area on the city of Lviv. Two of them were downed by Ukrainian anti-aircraft defense systems, said Bratchuk.
Lviv Aircraft Repair Plant Destroyed in missile strike
However, four Russian cruise missiles struck the Lviv Aircraft Repair Plant, destroying its buildings, according Lviv Mayor Andrii Sadovyi on Telegram. The plant specializes in the repair and overhaul of MiG-29 fighter aircraft.
The Kh-555 is an air-launched cruise missile with a highly acurate guidance system. The missile has reduced radar cross-section but is not completely invisible to radar. It can be launched at altitudes ranging from 60 to 10,000 meters. The Kh-555 missile can carry a 400 kg conventional warhead up to a distance of 3,500 km, according to information from Russian open sources.
