17.10.2026

On the night of October 17, Moscow was attacked by 144 drones, prompting the Russian capital’s airports to impose restrictions, and causing flights to be delayed and rerouted.

This was reported by the BBC’s Russian Service, according to Ukrinform.

Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin reported the drone attack on the city. On Saturday night, he initially stated that 69 drones had been shot down as they approached the Russian capital.

“Emergency service specialists are working at the crash sites of the UAVs,” Sobyanin wrote.

Toward morning, the mayor reported that another 75 drones attempting to attack Moscow had been destroyed. Thus, the total number of drones that Russian authorities claimed to have shot down reached 144.

According to ASTRA, shortly before midnight, Rosaviatsiya imposed restrictions on aircraft arrivals and departures at Moscow airports due to the drone attack. Restrictions were also in effect at other airports in Russia.

Around midnight, it was reported that five flights from Antalya to Moscow had been rerouted due to restrictions at Vnukovo Airport. In particular, passengers on one of the Pegasus Airlines flights from Antalya to Moscow reported that they had departed from Turkey at 7:35 p.m., and shortly before landing, they were informed that the airspace over the Russian capital was closed. Consequently, around 1:00 a.m., the plane landed at Pulkovo Airport in St. Petersburg. Since then, passengers have not been allowed to leave the plane. Flight attendants warned that they would have to remain on board “until the airspace over Moscow reopens.” It is unknown when that will happen.

An alert regarding drones was also issued in the Leningrad Region. At 2:10 a.m., the region’s governor, Alexander Drozdenco, announced an air raid alert and a reduction in mobile internet speeds.

In total, according to the Russian Ministry of Defense, air defense forces shot down 610 drones overnight. According to the ministry, the drones were intercepted over the territories of the Leningrad, Novgorod, Tver, Bryansk, Belgorod, Kursk, Oryol, Kaluga, Voronezh, Rostov, Smolensk, and Tula regions; the Moscow region; the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug, the Krasnodar Krai, the temporarily occupied Crimea, and the Black Sea.

As reported by Ukrinform, yesterday Moscow’s airports suspended operations for the third time this week due to Ukrainian drones, and more than 200 flights were canceled.

https://www.ukrinform.net/rubric-ato/4175368-drone-attacks-on-moscow-continue-since-last-night.html