Russia Launched a Record Number of Ballistic Missiles at Kyiv

The Russian Armed Forces used a record number of ballistic missiles in their strike on Kyiv.

Telegram channel monitorwar reported on this.

In total, on the night of July 18–19, the enemy launched more than 42 Iskander-M, Zircon, and S-300/400 ballistic missiles, most of which targeted the capital.

As a result of this attack on Kyiv, one person is known to have been killed, and 13 others were injured. The aftermath of the nighttime attack was documented in the Desnianskyi, Dniprovskyi, Solomianskyi, Sviatoshynskyi, and Shevchenkivskyi districts.

A missile also struck the Lukyanivska metro station, which sustained serious damage both externally and internally.

The number of missiles detected set a new record, as the previous record—33 ballistic missiles—was launched by the Russians on June 2, 2026, from the Bryansk, Kursk, and Rostov regions and the temporarily occupied Crimea.

Ahead of the attack, on July 18, 2026, the Defense Intelligence of the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense reported that as of mid-July, Russia had more than 100 Iskander-M ballistic missiles, more than 400 RM-48U missiles, and more than 120 Zircon missiles at its disposal.

Prior to that, in April 2026, the Defense Intelligence had estimated Russia’s stockpile of these types of missiles at up to 200 Iskander units, up to 450 for the RM-48U, and up to 230 Zircon missiles at the enemy’s disposal, adding that similar stockpiles of ballistic missiles were also in place as of December 1, 2025.

This means that the enemy maintains its stockpile at this target level in order to retain a certain number of missiles after such large-scale deployments.

At the same time, in June 2026, Militarnyi reported that as of spring 2026, the monthly production rate of Iskander-M ballistic missiles stood at 60 units.

Meanwhile, Russia modified the Iskander-M ballistic missiles to penetrate missile defense systems and adapt production to sanctions, in particular by incorporating components and technical solutions from North Korea’s KN-23.

In addition to traditional Iskander-M ballistic missiles, the Russians also use RM-48U missiles, which are launched from S-300PM and S-400 air defense systems. In 2026, the Russian leadership plans to produce more than 480 of these missiles, at a rate of 40 per month.