On Sunday, July 27, 2025, Russian authorities announced that Saint Petersburg was attacked by Ukrainian drones, resulting in the closure of the local airport for five hours. This incident occurred while President Vladimir Putin was celebrating Russian Navy Day in the city. Due to security concerns, the traditional naval parade had been canceled.
Saint Petersburg typically hosts a large naval parade with live television coverage on Navy Day, featuring a procession of warships and other military vessels sailing along the Neva River. Putin usually attends the celebration.
According to reports from Russian state television, it was anticipated last year that Ukraine planned to attack the naval parade in Saint Petersburg.
Dmitry Peskov, spokesman for the Kremlin, confirmed on Sunday that this year’s naval parade had been canceled for safety reasons, following earlier reports in July about its cancellation.
Putin arrived in Saint Petersburg on Sunday aboard a patrol boat to visit the historic naval headquarters. From there, he observed military exercises taking place in the Pacific, Arctic, Baltic, and Caspian Seas, involving over 150 ships and 15,000 personnel.
In a video address, Putin stated, “Today we are celebrating this holiday at a work location, testing the readiness of the fleet.”
The Russian Ministry of Defense reported that on Sunday, the air defense forces had shot down 291 Ukrainian fixed-wing drones, fewer than the record of 524 drones shot down on May 7, on the eve of Victory Day military parade.
Alexander Drozdenko, the Governor of Leningrad Oblast surrounding Saint Petersburg, reported that over a dozen drones were shot down in the region, with debris injuring a woman. By 8:40 AM GMT on Sunday, Drozdenko stated that the authorities had repelled the attack.
During the attack, Pulkovo Airport in Saint Petersburg was closed, resulting in 57 delayed flights and 22 flights being diverted to other airports. The airport resumed operations later on Sunday evening.
Russian blogger, Alexander Yunashev, a member of an official journalist delegation accompanying Peskov, mentioned that their flight from Moscow to Saint Petersburg was delayed by two hours due to the drone attack.
(Reference: Report by Reuters)