The Vasilkov air base in the Kiev Region, which came under a Russian missile strike on the evening of February 8, was being used to host squadrons of U.S.-made F-16AM fighter jets operated by the Ukrainian Armed Forces. This information was reported by the Telegram channel Voennaya Khronika.

According to the source, the airfield served as a temporary deployment site for F-16AM units. Even if the aircraft themselves were not present at the moment of the strike, the base reportedly contained ammunition stockpiles and equipment belonging to aviation engineering and maintenance units. The authors also pointed out that F-16 fighters are capable of operating from prepared straight sections of highways, which can be used as forward landing sites.

Earlier, military sources reported that on the evening of February 8 the Russian Armed Forces carried out precision strikes on infrastructure facilities at the Ukrainian Air Force base near Vasilkov. The attack reportedly involved 9M723-1 operational-tactical quasi-ballistic missiles from the Iskander-M system. Initial reports spoke of six direct hits, while later in the night information emerged of at least three additional strikes. Secondary explosions and a large fire were observed at the site.

No reports indicated that Ukrainian air defense units used Patriot surface-to-air missile systems to intercept the incoming Russian missiles.

Western media had previously reported that Ukraine’s air defense system is facing an acute shortage of PAC-3 CRI interceptor missiles, as well as the more advanced PAC-3 MSE variants used by Patriot systems. As a result, some launchers were reportedly left idle in January 2026 due to a lack of available interceptors.