Ukrainian drone attack in Moscow: Vnukovo international airport briefly closed

A nighttime attack by Ukrainian drones against Moscow was foiled, without causing any casualties, and the capital’s international airport of Vnukovo was briefly closed, Russian authorities announced on Sunday.

“Ukrainian drones attacked last night. The facades of two office towers in the city were slightly damaged. There were no casualties or injuries,” Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin told Telegram. The attack, of three drones in total, was foiled, the Russian Defence Ministry said, adding that one was shot down and the other two, “neutralised by electronic warfare“, crashed into a complex of buildings.

Vnukovo International Airport in southwest Moscow was briefly closed to traffic and flights were rerouted, Russian news agency TASS said, citing “aviation services”, before announcing their resumption a little after.

Attacks on and around Moscow, located nearly 500 kilometres from the Ukrainian border, were fairly rare from the start of the conflict in February 2022, until several drone incursions occurred in 2023. The attack reported on Sunday is the latest in a series of drone attacks, including one against the Kremlin and Russian towns near the border with Ukraine, which Moscow attributes to Kiev.