No more than 9% of Ukrainian missiles and drones penetrate Russian air defenses
Ukraine has begun addressing navigation problems with missiles such as the Flamingo, but they remain less precise and stealthy than Western weapons, often requiring hundreds of drones to overwhelm Russian air defenses, The Associated Press reported on Aug. 12.
Ukrainian missiles and drones are struggling to penetrate Russian air defenses, with only 5% to 9% of weapons launched making it through, according to Jack Watling, a senior research fellow at the Royal United Services Institute. Despite ongoing efforts to address navigation issues with missiles like the Flamingo, these weapons remain less precise and stealthy compared to Western counterparts, often necessitating a large number of drones to overwhelm defenses.
Ukraine is rapidly ramping up production and diversifying its arsenal, but still falls short in terms of missile count. The FP-9 ballistic missile, unveiled in April 2026, boasts a range of 855 kilometers and an 800-kilogram warhead, making it larger than Russia's 9M723 Iskander missile. If successful, Ukraine could potentially use the FP-9 to intercept Russian ballistic missiles by year-end, according to Fire Point chief designer Denys Shtilerman.
Written by urgent.news from New Voice of Ukraine's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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