Ukraine loads up F-16 Vulcans with 50,000 Danish rounds for Russian drone intercepts
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Denmark has supplied Ukraine with more than 50,000 rounds of 20mm ammunition for the cannons aboard its F-16 fighters, giving Ukrainian pilots a far cheaper way to destroy Russian drones than using scarce air-to-air missiles, Ukraine’s Defense Ministry reported. Ukrainian pilots are already using the ammunition during interception missions against both jet-powered and propeller-driven Russian strike UAVs.
The cannon option is particularly valuable against drones because it allows F-16s to engage relatively inexpensive targets without expending guided air-to-air missiles that can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars or more and are needed for higher-priority threats. The F-16’s primary gun is the M61A1 Vulcan, a six-barrel 20mm rotary cannon capable of firing at rates of up to 6,000 rounds per minute.
The weapon uses 20×102mm ammunition, including armor-piercing incendiary and high-explosive rounds. Its effective range against aerial targets is roughly 1,000 to 1,500 meters, requiring pilots to close much nearer to a drone than when engaging it with a missile.
That makes cannon interceptions more demanding, but also far more economical when conditions allow them.
Previously, a Ukrainian Mirage 2000-5F scored a first, shooting down a Russian S8000 Banderol cruise missile not with an air-to-air missile, but with bursts from its built-in 30mm cannons. France transferred Mirage 2000-5F fighters from its own Air and Space Force inventory to Ukraine beginning in 2025, giving Kyiv another Western fighter type for air-defense and strike missions.
The aircraft is particularly well suited to interception work. France describes the 2000-5F as an air-defense-focused variant equipped with an RDY multimode radar, MICA air-to-air missiles and two internal 30mm cannons.
Those guns are DEFA 554 revolver cannons mounted inside the fuselage. Each carries roughly 125 rounds and can fire at rates reaching about 1,800 rounds per minute, giving the pilot an extremely short but intense window of fire during a close-range interception.
If confirmed, the engagement would be particularly notable because the target was not a slow propeller-driven Shahed.
The S8000 Banderol is a small Russian jet-powered cruise missile developed by Kronstadt JSC. Ukraine’s Defense Intelligence lists its top speed at roughly 620–650 kilometers per hour, with a cruising speed of 520–560 km/h and a range of around 500 kilometers.
The weapon is primarily launched from Russia’s Orion UAV and is also being adapted for use from Mi-28N attack helicopters. It combines relatively low production cost with the speed and flight characteristics of a small cruise missile, making it a more difficult interception target than conventional Shahed-type drones.
The Banderol carries a large high-explosive fragmentation warhead and has increasingly appeared in Russian attacks against Ukraine since its first documented combat use in spring 2025. Ukrainian intelligence says the weapon relies on numerous foreign-made components, including its propulsion and electronics.
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