Record broken for Ukraine: Six Russian missiles destroyed in a single flight
On Tuesday January 7, the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense declared that six missiles had been shot down by a fighter jet in a single flight.
On its X account, it stated that “a (Ukrainian) F-16 fighter jet destroyed six cruise missiles in a single combat. This is the first time in the history of Fighting Falcon operations”. According to the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense, the record was set on December 13, 2024, during a massive attack launched by the Russian armed forces. On that day, Russia sent more than 90 different missiles and almost 200 drones into Ukraine.
Colonel Yurii Ihnat, Head of the Public Relations Department of the Ukrainian Armed Forces Air Force Command, quoted the F-16 pilot as saying: “Shooting down cruise missiles with a cannon is very risky because of the high speed of the target and the danger of explosions. But I did what the instructors in the US taught me, and I managed to hit it. It turned out that two missiles flying next to each other were destroyed at the same time.”
The pilot added: “A few bursts of cannon fire, then an explosion... then another! A secondary detonation', I thought, but it turned out to be two missiles.”
(MH with Manon Pierre - Source: L'Indépendant - Illustration: Unsplash)