Ukraine's air defenses shot down a Russian hypersonic missile for the first time during an attack on the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv this week, the Air Force has said, in a potentially major setback for the Kremlin's campaign of long-range air strikes.
The Kinzhal, which means "dagger" in Russian, is one of six "next-generation" weapons unveiled by Russian President Vladimir Putin in 2018, at which time he boasted that it could not be shot down by any of the world's air-defense systems.
Ukrainian Air Force Commander Mykola Oleshchuk said Saturday that the Kh-47 Kinzhal was shot down Thursday night over the region outside Kyiv. The Air Force said it had been taken down by a U.S. Patriot air-defense system.