Russia sets new record for drone, missile attacks on Ukraine in April
LONDON -- Ukraine's air force reported that Russia launched at least 6,804 long-range drones and missiles into Ukraine in April, according to daily data published by the force and analyzed by ABC News, marking the most intense month of long-range aerial attacks of the war to date.
Ukraine's air force said it faced 6,663 drones and 141 missiles over one month of overnight attacks, of which nearly 88% of the drones and more than 62% of the missiles were intercepted or suppressed by Ukrainian defenses.
Ukraine faced a nightly average of around 222 drones and four missiles through April, the data suggests.
April's figures surpass the previous monthly record set in March, when Russia launched a total of 6,600 munitions -- 6,462 drones and 138 missiles -- per daily data published by the air force in Kyiv.
Moscow's forces set the new record despite a short-lived Easter truce, which saw both sides report no long-range drone or missile strikes on April 12 -- the first 24-hour period in which neither side reported attacks since Russia marked its annual "Victory Day" celebration on May 9, 2025.
Russia's largest attack in April came on the night of April 15, when Moscow launched 703 munitions -- 659 drones and 44 missiles -- into Ukraine. The attack was the largest of 2026 to date and killed at least 19 people, Ukrainian officials said.
Long-range drone and missile strikes have been a key element of the conflict as both Kyiv and Moscow seek to degrade the other's economy and undermine their ability to prosecute and fund the ongoing war, now in its fifth year. The strikes have continued despite the resumption of U.S.-brokered peace talks, which have stalled amid the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran.
Neither side provides detailed data on the scale of their own attacks or their targets, though often release statements describing the targets as military, energy or industrial sites. Both sides accuse the other of intentionally attacking civilian targets.
Ukraine's air force publishes what it says is a daily tally of Russian drone and missile strikes, including information as to how many munitions were intercepted and how many penetrated air defenses.
Moscow, meanwhile, publishes only the number of Ukrainian drones and other projectiles it claims to have intercepted. As of Thursday, Russia's Defense Ministry said it downed more than 4,700 Ukrainian drones in April.
ABC News cannot independently verify the data released by either Russia or Ukraine. It is possible that both sides may seek to exaggerate the effectiveness of their air defenses, or to amplify the attacks against them as proof that their enemies are not interested in pursuing a peace deal, experts have suggested.
Civilian casualties are rising on both sides amid the ongoing drone war. The United Nations' Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine said in a statement that March saw a 49% jump in civilian casualties versus February, with at least 211 killed and 1,206 injured across the course of the month. The mission says that at least 15,578 civilians have been killed in Ukraine since February 2022.
The mission said that short-range drone strikes in regions close to the front were responsible for most casualties. Nonetheless, civilian casualties were reported across 19 Ukrainian regions and in the city of Kyiv in March, the mission said, with 97% of reported casualties occurring in Ukrainian government-controlled territory.
Local Russian officials have also reported casualties from Ukrainian drone attacks. In the border region of Belgorod, for example, at least one person was killed in a Ukrainian drone attack on April 17, while another person was reported killed by a Ukrainian drone on the night of April 26. In the neighboring Kursk region, officials said one person was killed by a Ukrainian drone on March 24.
Russian-Ukrainian drone exchanges have also resulted in multiple incursions into the airspace of neighboring nations, among them NATO members. Such violations have further raised concerns of the war spilling over into non-combatant nations and potentially NATO allies invoking the bloc's Article 5 collective defense clause.
Allied officials have reported Russian drone violations in Romania, Poland, Lithuania and Latvia. Russian drones have also overflown Moldova, which is not a NATO member. Russian officials have denied responsibility for such incursions.
Russian drone incursions last year prompted Poland to formally invoke NATO's Article 4, which initiates official consultations among allies regarding a direct security threat.
NATO aircraft are regularly scrambled in NATO nations such as Poland and Romania in response to Russian drone attacks along Ukraine's western borders.
Moscow has also accused NATO nations of allowing their airspace to be used by Ukrainian drones attacking Russian targets -- allegations NATO leaders have denied.
Stray Ukrainian drones have been reported falling in Finland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.
