Russian air defence has difficulty detecting and destroying drones, says the UK Ministry of Defence, citing its intelligence.
Overnight of 29-30 August, Russia experienced up to five separate drone attacks; it is considered to be the largest attack on Russia since the beginning of the war. Explosions were recorded in Moscow, Bryansk, and Ryazan, as well as at the Pskov airbase close to the Estonian border.
The attack on Pskov likely damaged several Russian military transport aircraft. During August 2023, Russia experienced 25 separate drone attacks.
Many of these UAVs have reached their targets, which likely means that Russian air defence has difficulty to detect and destroy them. Russia is likely rethinking its air defence strategy in the area between Ukraine and Moscow to better deal with these attacks.
Previous strikes against Russian military air bases have led to the dispersal of Russian aircraft to locations across Russia. However, the recent strikes against Soltsy and Pskov have demonstrated that as UAVs have significant reach, making further dispersal more challenging.
It is likely that Russia will have to consider the addition of further air defence systems at airfields that it considers to be at risk from UAV attacks.
Earlier, there were reports of explosions in the occupied Crimea in the area of the 126th "Guards" Brigade of the Black Sea Fleet. The explosions resulted in deaths and injuries, who were promptly brought to a hospital in Simferopol.