Unprecedented wave of 'Shahed' drone attacks across Ukraine

A large-scale air attack across Ukraine

During the night of May 13, 2026, Ukraine experienced a massive air attack using dozens, and perhaps hundreds, of 'Shahed' type drones. According to reports from Київський купол | Графіки, the attack waves focused on strategic hubs, with dozens of vehicles observed passing over areas such as Chernobyl, Ivankiv, and Borodyanka in the Kyiv region alone.

The ОПЕРАТИВНИЙ ІНФОРМ channel reported on a complex operating pattern, including about 70 drones that arrived from the south via Kherson, Odesa, and Mykolaiv, while additional waves penetrated from the north through the Chernihiv region. The channel, which reports on military movements in real time, noted that this involves a "continuous movement of vehicles" aimed at a series of central districts, including Kirovohrad, Cherkasy, and Vinnytsia.

The information source Повітряна Тривога 🚀 Карта Київська estimated the scale of the attack at about 130 drones at a certain point in time, moving east towards Rivne, Lutsk, and even Ivano-Frankivsk. According to the channel's announcement, this is a "very large quantity of Shaheds" extending over a wide sector from Zhytomyr to Chernihiv. Additionally, there were reports of vehicle penetration towards the Lviv and Khmelnytskyi regions.

The Київ Головне channel pointed out that besides the vehicles already in the skies of Ukraine, additional launches were identified from targets in Russia, including Orel, Bryansk, and Kursk. The reports emphasize the extensive war effort and the deployment of air defense, which was forced to deal with multiple threats simultaneously in a large number of districts across the country.