Russian Drones Target Odessa and Death of High-Ranking Russian Air Force Commander

SadaNews - Ukraine announced the death of 3 people due to an attack by Russian drones that targeted the coastal city of Odessa in the south of the country, while Russian media confirmed the death of a high-ranking air force commander and 30 others in a military plane crash.

The Russian drone attack resulted in the death of at least three people, including a child, and injured 16 others, as well as causing power outages for thousands of residents early on Monday, according to officials.

Moscow has intensified its launch of drones and missiles on Ukraine in recent days, in the deadliest conflict in Europe since World War II.

Following the attack, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky wrote on social media, "Reports of three people killed in this attack, including a child who is only two years old," adding that 16 people sustained varying degrees of injuries.

Zelensky stated that Russia launched more than 140 drones during this attack, confirming that significant damage was inflicted on energy facilities in Chernihiv, Sumy, Kharkiv, and Dnipro in Odessa.

In contrast, the Ukrainian Air Force confirmed on Monday that it shot down 114 drones out of the 141 launched by Russia during the aerial assault on Ukraine last night.

Russian Plane Crash

On the Russian side, Russian media revealed that a senior official stated on Monday that a high-ranking air force commander and 30 others died last week due to a military transport plane crash in Crimea, which is under Russian control.

Media quoted the governor of the Murmansk region in northern Russia, Andrei Chibis, as saying that "Alexander Outroshchenko", the commander of the air force and air defense of the 45th army of the northern fleet, was killed in the crash.

The aircraft has been in service since the late 1960s and has also been used by airlines for cargo transport, but the record of this type of aircraft has been associated with several fatal incidents over the past ten years.

In a related context, Benjamin Kondratiev, governor of the Krasnodar region (southern Russia), announced the registration of intensive drone attacks from Ukraine on Sunday, which led to at least 8 injuries and damage to residential buildings.

The Russian news agency "TASS" quoted the Ministry of Defense as saying that its air defenses shot down 50 Ukrainian drones during the night from Sunday to Monday morning.

Russia launched what it called a "special military operation" in Ukraine on February 24, 2022, dragging both countries into a war that has resulted in the deaths of tens of thousands of civilians and soldiers on both sides, continuing for more than 4 years without pause to this day.