Moscow Airports Halt Operations Amid Intensifying Drone Assaults

For the second day in a row, Moscow has come under large-scale drone attacks, resulting in flight delays and temporary shutdowns at all major airports around the Russian capital. Operations were suspended multiple times overnight before resuming early Thursday morning, causing disruption for dozens of flights and heightening concerns about the expanding reach of the conflict.

Since midnight local time on Thursday, Russian air defense systems intercepted and downed 26 drones headed toward the city, according to a series of updates posted on Telegram by Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin. These latest drones add to the scores repelled over the past 24 hours. Authorities have reported no injuries from the incidents.

According to a flight safety watchdog, all four airports servicing the greater Moscow area experienced repeated suspensions of operations over the past day. Services resumed shortly after 6 a.m. local time Thursday. The attacks come amid continued volatility in the region, underscoring that any hopes for a ceasefire between Ukraine and Russia — which launched the current war with its full-scale invasion in 2022 — remain distant.

Drone strikes have escalated in recent weeks, despite the two countries engaging in their first direct talks since the beginning of the war and a recent phone conversation between former U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

This week’s drone campaign has drawn comparisons to the last major flight disruption in Moscow, which occurred between May 7 and 8. That incident coincided with visits from several global leaders, including Chinese President Xi Jinping, who were in Russia to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II.

What distinguishes this latest series of attacks is their persistence throughout the day. Previously, Ukrainian drone operations were largely confined to nighttime hours. The shift in timing points to Ukraine’s increasing capacity to challenge Russian air defenses and potentially maximize economic disruption in the capital.

Drone activity has also extended beyond Moscow. Ukrainian strikes targeted other parts of central Russia, with incidents reported in the Kaluga, Smolensk, and Ryazan regions. In the Tula region, which borders Moscow, officials reported enduring ten separate waves of drone incursions, according to a local governor. Altogether, Russia’s Defense Ministry claimed that 105 drones were shot down overnight across the country.

Meanwhile in Ukraine, air raid sirens were activated in Kyiv on Thursday morning as Russian drones approached the city. This follows a series of large-scale Russian drone strikes on Ukrainian territory last week, further illustrating the tit-for-tat escalation that continues to define the conflict.