Drone Attack on Moscow Region Kills Two, Injures Six; 249 Drones Intercepted

A large-scale drone attack on the Moscow Region occurred between 3:00 a.m. and 5:00 a.m. Moscow time on September 20, 2026. Russian air defense forces and electronic warfare systems reported destroying or jamming 249 drones across 17 municipalities. The attack resulted in at least two deaths and six injuries, including two children who were hospitalized.

The deadliest strike hit a three-story residential building in Sofyino, Ramenskoye district, killing a 44-year-old woman and injuring five others—three adults and two children. In Orekhovo-Zuevo municipality, an elderly man was killed when a drone struck a private house that was destroyed and caught fire. A sixth person was injured in Leninsky district. In Ramenskoye, falling drone debris ignited a fire on the roof of a 21-story apartment block, requiring the evacuation of approximately 400 people, including 70 children. An additional 20 vehicles were damaged in that location. In Kotelniki, a drone struck an apartment building, causing fires that spread across three floors. A warehouse complex in Sofyino was also set ablaze.

Damage was reported across multiple municipalities: private houses were damaged in Ramenskoye, Kolomna, and Yegoriyevsk; fires occurred in apartment buildings in Leninsky district, Lyubertsy, and Lytkaryno; residential and industrial buildings were damaged in Istra and Voskresensk. A facility at the Moscow Oil Refinery in the Kapotnya district of Moscow itself was struck, though Russian authorities reported no casualties there. A drone also struck a building near Orekhov Boulevard in Moscow.

The attack disrupted Moscow's aviation operations. Russian aviation authorities temporarily restricted flight operations at Domodedovo, Zhukovsky, Vnukovo, and Sheremetyevo airports. Over 30 flights were unable to land in Moscow, with approximately 25 flights bound for Sheremetyevo diverted to cities including Nizhny Novgorod, Kazan, St. Petersburg, and Samara, and about 10 flights unable to land at Vnukovo. The attack occurred during the second day of Russia's three-day State Duma parliamentary elections.