Russian drone attacks on Ukrainian passenger trains began at the end of 2025 and sharply increased in 2026, intensifying disruptions across the country’s rail network. Since the full-scale invasion in 2022, Ukrzaliznytsia, Ukraine’s state railway operator, reports that 521 locomotives have been struck, with nearly 60% of these hits occurring in 2026. Attacks on railway facilities overall rose from 1,206 in 2025 to 1,700 so far this year. In September 2026 alone, 5,831 trains were evacuated due to drone threats, averaging 205 train stoppages daily.
Passenger Experiences During Drone Evacuations
Passengers routinely face sudden evacuations and extended delays amid ongoing drone strikes. Yuliia Ponomarenko, a
27-year-old marketing specialist from Kharkiv, experienced a forced halt near the Ukraine-Poland border during her September 2026 trip to Warsaw. Russian drones had hit a locomotive nearby, delaying her train for six hours while emergency crews cleared the area. She said, “We were really lucky that we were delayed a little and it wasn’t our train.”
Seventeen-year-old Anastasiia Ryvbalchenko was evacuated at 4 a.m. on 16 September 2026 from a train traveling between Odesa and Kirovohrad during a drone strike nearby. She reported frequent previous evacuations on her journey and stated, “I was already thinking that if there was another
evacuation, I just couldn’t take it any more.” After a loud explosion, passengers fled into nearby woods until it was safe to continue. Anastasiia’s journey highlights the challenges faced by rail passengers amid ongoing threats.
Ukrzaliznytsia’s Operational Response and Safety Measures
Ukrzaliznytsia monitors drone threats in real time from an underground facility in Kyiv known as the “Iron Command Centre.” This control centre tracks hostile drones, each with a 100-kilometre radius where passenger trains must be evacuated promptly. Trains within these zones are stopped and passengers are escorted off, often waiting trackside until the threat passes. In September 2026, across Ukraine’s rail network, this protocol resulted
in 5,831 train evacuations.
Preparation for harsh winter conditions is underway, with Ukrzaliznytsia organizing winter evacuation packs, mobile shelters, and bus services to assist passengers stranded during frequent stoppages in subzero temperatures. These efforts aim to sustain service despite the heightened threat environment.
Casualties and Impact on Rail Infrastructure
Railway operations have suffered from increased attacks, with 521 locomotives hit since 2022 and nearly 60% of those strikes occurring in 2026. Overall assaults on railway facilities have increased to 1,700 this year from 1,206 in 2025. In 2026, eight Ukrzaliznytsia employees were killed, six of them when a ballistic missile struck a locomotive depot in Kyiv.
These attacks add to logistical challenges and human losses within the rail sector.
Official Statements and Defense Tactics
Oleksandr Pertsovskyi, CEO of Ukrzaliznytsia, described the conflict with Russian forces as a “real war with railways,” emphasizing passenger and crew safety as the highest priority. He detailed how Russian attacks utilize shahed drones equipped with cameras, mesh networks, AI tools, and image recognition for precision strikes on moving targets. He said, “It’s a combination of the deadly force of their shahed drones and precision that they achieve with cameras and mesh networks so they can hit moving targets.”
Pertsovskyi also referred to the ongoing countermeasures as
a “cat-and-mouse game,” utilizing electronic disruption methods to impair drones’ connectivity. He stated, “Our mission is not to let our train or our crew members be in that immediate attack area.” Despite the challenges, he pledged, “We’ll keep connecting the country, no matter what, be it winter, be it summer, no matter how hard the enemy hits us.”
The Russian Defence Ministry denies targeting civilians, claiming that its strikes focus on railway infrastructure used for military logistics.
