Russia’s air defenses overnight on October 17, while repelling a Ukrainian drone attack on military and strategic targets in occupied Crimea, downed one of their own fighter jets, Ukrainian Navy spokesperson Dmytro Pletenchuk said on Apostrof TV.
Pletenchuk said Russian forces are intercepting Ukrainian aerial attacks in ways that have led to friendly-fire incidents. He cited an episode on October 17 in which a Russian Su-30SM fighter came under fire.
According to Ukraine’s General Staff, from February 24, 2022, to October 17, 2025, Ukrainian forces have destroyed 427 Russian military aircraft, 346 helicopters, and 71,025 UAVs of various types. Over the course of the full-scale invasion, Russia’s military has suffered more than 1.1 million killed and wounded, Kyiv says. Ukrainian defenders have also destroyed 11,226 tanks, more than 23,000 armored combat vehicles, nearly 34,000 artillery systems, 1,520 multiple launch rocket systems, 1,228 air defense systems, sunk 28 ships and boats, and one submarine.
Overnight on October 17, Ukraine carried out air strikes on military and strategic facilities inside Russia and in temporarily occupied Ukrainian territory. In occupied Donetsk, Ukrainian drones destroyed an ammunition depot, and in occupied Crimea they damaged an oil depot in Gvardeyskoye, according to Ukrainian officials.
Also overnight, drones targeted military and strategic sites near the Russian cities of Sochi and Vladimir, where residents reported several explosions. Russia’s Defense Ministry said on October 17 that its air defenses shot down 61 Ukrainian drones, including two over the Moscow region.
