A Black Day for Moscow

18 June 2026 will go down in history as a black day for Moscow.

A massive attack by Ukrainian drones on the Russian capital led to a massive fire at the largest oil refinery in south-east Moscow.

The attack by dozens of drones began early on Thursday morning and lasted for several hours. 

The Mayor of Moscow reported that 180 Ukrainian drones had been destroyed. Operations at all the capital’s airports were suspended for five hours, with 527 flights delayed or cancelled.

By Thursday evening, the fire at the Moscow Refinery was still burning and had not yet been extinguished. It is important to note that this refinery produces 50 per cent of the petrol and diesel consumed by Moscow’s residents.

Due to the fire, the entire Moscow sky was blanketed by black plumes of smoke, visible for many kilometres.

Another notable fact was that Russian air defence systems were unable to shoot down the drones, which were flying at low altitude, and all of this was captured on camera by Moscow residents themselves.

The impact of one of the drones also caused a fire at a major city market – ‘Sadovod’.

According to the authorities, 17 people were injured as a result of the attack.