Russian forces sharply increased their use of small cruise missiles and jet-powered Geran drones in attacks on Ukraine throughout October 2026, according to Yuri Ignat, head of communications for the Ukrainian Air Force Command.

Ignat reported that Russian troops launched approximately 360 small cruise missiles of the Banderol and Dan-T types during the month.

The figures also included 4,740 Geran-2, Gerbera and Parodiya drones, along with more than 4,000 jet-powered Geran-4 and Geran-5 unmanned aerial vehicles. In addition, Russia fired over 150 missiles at targets across Ukraine.

The Ukrainian General Staff released similar statistics, reporting a significant number of jet-powered drones among the weapons deployed by Russian forces in October.

According to its calculations, Russia launched more than 4,000 Geran-3, Geran-4 and Geran-5 UAVs during the month.

At the same time, Ukrainian military officials recorded a decline in the use of piston-engine drones, including the Geran-2 and Garpiya models. Their total number fell to approximately 2,400–2,500 units.

The General Staff also identified a separate category of smaller unmanned systems, consisting of Gerbera loitering munitions and Parodiya aerial decoys.

Around 2,300 drones of these two types were reportedly deployed by Russian forces in October.

The figures presented by Ukrainian military officials indicate a shift in the composition of Russia’s aerial attacks, with thousands of jet-powered drones and hundreds of small cruise missiles used during the month, alongside conventional UAVs and decoy systems.