How they were hit? Multiple drones overwhelming relatively small number of air defense systems. Systems like Patriot are great against several very capable targets like ballistic missiles. Such (expensive centralized) systems do much worse against multiple widespread targets like an armada of low flying low speed drones (add to that low speed cut-off filter to avoid hitting general aviation and the likes).

Point defense systems like Skyshield (or even that very old and cheap - $2M - Gepard https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flakpanzer_Gepard ) work wonderfully against all those drones coming in.

Heck, even just soldiers with MANPADs would have easily shot down those drones (you just have to distribute those soldiers to all those strategic objects which hasn't been done)

We have classic situation here - everybody have been watching Ukraine war for 4 years, yet nobody has prepared for such style of war.

>I am unconvinced that even AMZN's pocket change could realiably protect against the kind of attacks we see in this war

No even low flying slow drone - pretty typical situation of top Russian cruise missile shot down by Gepard

https://www.reddit.com/r/CombatFootage/comments/zdbvim/a_ukr...

Also AMZN has its own drones dept - in "hot" zones in "hot" times they can put several people with drones (in the high speed configuration) to be used for interception. This is basically how Ukranians have been doing, and that is an experience they are now exporting to the Gulf states.

https://www.hisutton.com/Ukrainian-Interceptor-Drones.html