MOSCOW. July 5 (Interfax) - Russia's air defense systems have destroyed more than 42,000 airborne targets since the start of the special military operation in Ukraine, Russian Air Defense and Missile Defense Forces Commander and Aerospace Forces Deputy Commander Andrei Semyonov said.
"In total, air defense forces have destroyed more than 42,000 airborne targets during the special military operation. They include over 550 planes, more than 180 helicopters and more than 27,000 unmanned aerial vehicles," Semyonov told journalists on Friday.
Over 5,500 servicemen of the air defense forces have been presented with state awards, and seven of them have received the Hero of Russia title, he said.
"The air defense forces efficiently repel attacks by enemy piloted aircraft and unmanned aerial vehicles, ward off strikes by air-launched and surface-to-air tactical and cruise missiles, including by those made in the U.S., the UK and France, and destroy rockets of different types," Semyonov said.
"A common air defense shield has been deployed in the Russian Federation, including the special military operation zone, to counter the whole spectrum of air-launched weapons of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. It is safe to say today that no other army in the world has the same experience of creating such large-scale air defense groups," he said.