Ukraine war: Biggest drone attack on Russia, two killed in Kyiv, Ukrainian speedboats destroyed

Moscow has accused Ukraine of launching supposedly one of the biggest drone attacks on Russian soil since it invaded 18 months ago.

Drones hit an airport in Russia’s western Pskov region near the border with Estonia and Latvia, sparking a massive fire, the governor and local media reported.

More drones were shot down over Oryol, Bryansk, Ryazan, Kaluga and the Moscow region surrounding the Russian capital, according to the Russian Defence Ministry.

All flights to and from Pskov airport were cancelled on Wednesday so the impact of one strike, involving between 10 and 20 drones, could be assessed in the daylight. 

Four Il-76 transport aircraft were damaged, Russia’s state news agency Tass reported, citing emergency officials.

Footage and images posted on social media showed smoke billowing over Pskov city and a large blaze. 

Regional Governor Mikhail Vedernikov said there were no casualties, with the fire contained. He added it was the largest drone strike on Russian soil attack since the fighting began in February 2022. 

Two people died Wednesday morning in the largest Russian strike on Kyiv "since spring", according to military authorities in the Ukrainian capital. 

Falling debris killed two men and injured another after Russia launched a “massive combined attack” on the Ukrainian capital involving drones and missiles, the head of the local military administration Sergei Popko wrote on Telegram.

Explosions in Ukraine were also reported in the southern city of Odesa and the Cherkasy region.

In May, Ukraine said it had countered the "largest drone attack" on Kyiv "since the start of the Russian invasion". At least 59 drones were fired at the Ukrainian capital, then killing two. 

Moscow claimed to have destroyed Ukrainian military