Overview
- Ukraine’s intelligence directorate, Venislavskyi disclosed Monday, carried out two wartime space launches that reached over 100 kilometers and 204 kilometers and were recorded by technical means.
- One operation released a rocket from a transport aircraft at about 8,000 meters in Ukrainian airspace, which he described as a first for Europe because starting higher avoids the densest air and saves fuel.
- He said the same unit fields missiles that fly at hypersonic speeds and strike up to 500 kilometers, linking those weapons to the space- and air-launch work now underway.
- He framed the effort as a way to hit Russia’s Oreshnik missile before its warheads split in space, noting that intercepting above 100 kilometers beats trying to stop several fast-moving targets lower down.
- Officials said Ukraine has preliminary partner offers of satellites, a plan to use the air system as an “air spaceport,” and draft laws for Space Forces, though scaling depends on financing and outside help.