Ukrainian F-16 pilot killed during the disposal of large Russian air raid

A Ukrainian F-16 yacht pilot died in a crash while repelling a Russian nocturnal attack involving hundreds of drones and missiles, the Ukrainian army said on Sunday.

It was the third of Ukraine, such a loss of an F-16, because last year it first used the Jets made by the US, with Moscow his air barries intensifying.

KYIV has not unveiled the size of his F-16 fleet, but they have become a centrally and heavily used part of the defenses of Ukraine.

“The pilot used all his weapons on board and shot seven air goals. While shooting the latter, his plane was damaged and started to lose the height,” said Ukraine Air Force on Telegram.

The Air Force said the pilot did everything he could and flew the jet away from a settlement, but had no time to cast out.

The Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zenskyy called for more support from Washington and Western allies to strengthen the air defense of Ukraine after the attack, which damaged houses and infrastructure throughout the country and was injured at least 12 people, according to the local authorities.

In Kiev, families huddled in metro stations for shelter after air raid had spoken Sirens.

Machine gun fire and explosions were heard in the capital, as well as in the western city of LVIV, where such attacks occur less frequently.

The Ukrainian army said that Russia had launched a total of 477 drones and 60 rockets of different species in Ukraine at night.

“Moscow will not stop as long as it has the opportunity to launch enormous strikes,” said Mr. Zenskyy on X.

In the meantime, the Ria Novosti press office run by the State said that one person was killed by a Ukrainian drone in Russian-controlled part of the Luhansk region in Ukraine.

Both Ukraine and Russia say they are not attacking civilian goals.

Zenskyy asks us for more support

Ukraine says that recent attacks by Russia emphasize the need for further support from Washington, who has not committed himself to new military aid for Ukraine under President Donald Trump.

Mr. Trump said that he is considering a Ukrainian request for more Patriot rocket batteries after he had met Mr. Zenskyy on a NATO top last Wednesday.

“This war must put an end – the pressure on the aggressor is necessary, as well as protection,” said the Ukrainian president on Sunday after the attack.

He added that Ukraine was ready to buy American air defense systems and counted on “leadership, political will and the support of the United States, Europe and all our partners”.

In recent weeks, Russia has launched large -scale strikes on Ukrainian cities, killed dozens of civilians, caused hundreds of more injured and widespread damage.

During the last barrage, explosions were heard in Kiev, LVIV, Poltava, Mykolaiv, Dnipropetrovsk, Cherkasy and the Ivano-Frankivsk regions, witnesses and regional governors.

The Ukrainian army said that air strikes were admitted to six locations.

Eleven people, including two children, were injured in the Central Cherkasy region, the Governor Ihor Taburets said on Telegram.

Three multiple buildings and a university were damaged in the attack, he said.

Ukraine to withdraw from the anti-land mine treaty

Also on Sunday, the Presidential website of Ukraine said that Mr. Zenskyy had signed a decree that started with the withdrawal of the country from the Ottawa Convention, which prohibits the production and use of anti-person land mines.

Ukraine ratified the convention in 2005.

A Senior Ukrainian legislator, Roman Costenko, said that parliamentary approval is still needed to withdraw from the Convention.

“This is a step that the reality of the war has long been demanded. Russia is not a party to this convention and uses huge mines against our military and citizens,” said Mr. Kostko, secretary of the Ukrainian parliamentary commission for national security, defense and intelligence, on his Facebook page.

“We cannot hold in an environment where the enemy has no restrictions,” he added.

Reuters/ABC