Russian forces reportedly used a new type of attack drone, the Lancet with autonomous artificial intelligence, for the first time in a strike on Kyiv on the morning of Monday, March 16.
Kyiv Mayor Vitaliy Klitschko reported that debris from the drone fell in the very center of the capital.
“There is no fire or casualties. The enemy attack on Kyiv continues,” he said.
Videos circulating on social media show debris from a downed drone falling near the Independence Monument on Maidan Nezalezhnosti Square.
According to Defense Express outlet, citing its sources, the drone near the monument was a Lancet. It remains unclear whether this was the intended target.
The fragments indicate the drone’s identity, including the distinctive X-shaped tail with a pusher propeller and a wing marked with an RF index.
Preliminary analysis suggests the drone used AI for swarm operations, autonomous navigation, and target strikes without operator communication, according to Defense Express.
The report notes unusual colored-circle markings, similar to those on Russian autonomous V2U drones, likely for maintaining formation in a “flock.”
Lancets typically have a communication range of 50 km, though Russia claims flights of up to 90 km, with a record of 136 km.
Kyiv is over 200 km from the Russian border, making the drone’s exact launch point uncertain. Belarus is about 90 km from Kyiv, which could be a possible launch area.
Ukrainian officials say such a strike is unlikely.
Serhiy Beskrestnov, an adviser to Ukraine’s defense minister, said Lancet drones are incapable of reaching Kyiv because they are designed as short-range strike UAVs for frontline targets and lack the battery life and radio control range required for such a distance.
“I believe that it is likely the debris was intentionally dropped from Shahed drones as part of an information special operation by the enemy,” the adviser added.
According to him, the military is continuing to collect information to analyze the incident, including studying radio signals, radar data, and photos from interceptor drones.
Andriy Kovalenko, head of the Center for Countering Disinformation at Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council, also said it is possible the Russians deliberately dropped fragments of an AI drone, since such a drone would not be capable of reaching Kyiv from Russian territory.
According to an Air Force report, between 6 p.m. on March 15 and Monday morning, Russian forces launched 211 attack drones, including Shahed, Gerbera, Italmas, and other types. Over 100 of these were Shahed drones.
“The peculiarity of this attack was the atypical morning assault using various types of attack drones on the Kyiv region,” the report states.
The main axes of the attack were the Odesa, Zaporizhzhia, and Kyiv regions.
The assault was repelled by Ukrainian aviation, anti-aircraft missile units, electronic warfare teams, unmanned systems units, and mobile fire groups of the Defense Forces.
Preliminary data indicate that as of 11 a.m., Ukrainian air defenses had shot down or suppressed 194 Russian UAVs, including Shahed, Gerbera, and Italmas drones. The report did not mention any Lancets though.
Additionally, 16 strike UAVs were neutralized at 10 locations, while debris from downed drones was observed at 11 other locations.
Russia attacked Kyiv and Kharkiv with drones on the morning of Monday, according to local authorities.
The attack in Kyiv began around 08:26 a.m. Explosions were heard almost immediately as air defenses engaged incoming targets.
Correspondents of Kyiv Post in different parts of the city reported hearing explosions and the sound of small arms fire, which is often used to shoot down drones.
Monitoring channels also reported a possible ballistic missile threat toward Kyiv, including potential Iskander missiles launches, but this information has not been confirmed.
The head of the Kyiv City Military Administration (KMVA), Timur Tkachenko, said part of a drone had fallen in an open area in the Solomyanskyi district, while in the Svyatoshynskyi district debris landed in a non-residential area, igniting dry grass.
The air alert was lifted at 9:57 a.m., but it was reissued at 11:10 a.m. and canceled again at 11:44 a.m.
Moreover, at 9 a.m., Kharkiv Mayor Ihor Terekhov reported that a Shahed drone struck the Shevchenkivskyi district of the city, injuring one person.
Later, another strike was reported on the border of the Kyivskyi and Shevchenkivskyi districts of Kharkiv, damaging transport infrastructure.
This ongoing news story will be updated as more information becomes available.