Russia carried out its largest combined series of strikes of the war on the night of June 28-29, launching over 500 missiles and drones against Ukraine. The Ukrainian Air Force reported that Russia launched them from the cities of Kursk, Orel and Bryansk; Shatalovo, Smolensk region; and occupied Cape Chauda, Crimea.
This is according to the Institute for the Study of War (ISW).
The Ukrainian Air Force reported that Russian forces also launched four Kh-47M2 "Kinzhal" aeroballistic missiles from the airspace over Tambov region; seven Iskander-M/KN-23" ballistic missiles from Voronezh region; 41 Kh-101/Iskander-K cruise missiles from Saratov, Kursk and Bryansk regions; five Kalibr cruise missiles from the Black Sea; and three S-300 air defense missiles from the Kursk region.
221 drones, one Iskander-M/KN-23 ballistic missile, 33 Kh-101/Iskander-K cruise missiles and four Kalibr cruise missiles were shot down, and 225 drones and one Kh-101/Iskander-K cruise missile were shot down by Ukrainian electronic warfare systems. Civilian infrastructure, including residential buildings and educational facilities, was hit in Ternopil, Ivano-Frankivsk, Cherkasy, and Mykolaiv regions, as well as railway and industrial infrastructure in Lviv and Poltava regions.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky acknowledged that a Ukrainian F-16 fighter pilot was killed in repelling the strikes.
Russia continues to use an increasing number of drones in its night strike packages to overcome Ukrainian air defenses and enable follow-up strikes with cruise and ballistic missiles.
The increase is largely due to Russia's efforts to increase its defense industry production, especially Shahed and decoy drones and ballistic missiles.
Notably, Ukrainian forces managed to shoot down only one of the seven ballistic missiles "Iskander-M/KN-23" and did not shoot down any of the four "Kinzhal" aeroballistic missiles during the series of strikes from June 28 to 29. Zelensky called for strengthening air defense and reiterated that Ukraine is ready to purchase American air defense systems.
US President Donald Trump recently spoke with Zelensky about possible sales of American "Patriot" air defense systems on June 25.
The "Patriot" systems are vital to Ukraine's ability to defend itself against Russian ballistic missile strikes, especially as Russia reportedly increases its production and stockpiles of ballistic missiles to allow for larger and more frequent ballistic missile strikes against Ukraine.
Russia appears to be increasingly targeting civilian areas in its large-scale strike packages. The head of the Kyiv City Military Administration, Timur Tkachenko, said Russia has changed its strike tactics to inflict as much damage as possible on civilian areas.
Tkachenko noted that Russian missile and drone strikes have been heavily targeted at Kyiv three times in June 2025, with a total of 285 drones and 65 missiles fired at the capital so far in June 2025 - a sharp increase from the 35 drones and one ballistic missile that Russian forces fired at Kyiv in January 2025. Tkachenko noted that 42 civilians, including one child, have died as a result of Russian strikes on the capital since early June 2025 and that 234 people, including 11 children, have been injured. Tkachenko reported that Russian forces are carrying out "double" strikes against rescuers and using cluster munitions with delayed detonations that threaten both civilians and rescuers.
Russian officials and bloggers have called on Russia to step up its strikes.
Satellite images and Russian government statements indicate that Russia is trying to increase aircraft production in the medium and long term. Finnish broadcaster Yle reported on June 28 that satellite images collected between mid-2024 and May 2025, show that Russia has built or expanded at least five buildings at the Kazan Aviation Plant by 19,000 square meters.
The plant produces and modernizes Russian Tupolev strategic aircraft, such as the Tu-160M, Tu-160M2 and Tu-22M3, as well as helicopters. Russian authorities plan to continue the new construction until the end of 2026 to increase the plant's production capabilities.
The press service of the Russian state-owned United Aircraft Corporation (UAC) announced in January 2025 that the authorities have already built a new final assembly hall, upgraded production technologies and purchased new equipment for the plant, such as numerically controlled machines, welding robots and measurement and control systems.