It was reportedly hit right after taking off.
Chopper Dropper
Ukrainian forces have reportedly brought down a 12-ton, three-crew Russian helicopter using a tiny two-pound drone loaded with explosives.
Footage circulating online shows the Mil Mi-8 helicopter burning in a field near Donetsk near the front lines of the conflict, though the incident has yet to be independently verified.
For quite some time now, Ukraine has been using low-cost, domestically produced drones for long-range attacks. According to military officials, Ukraine produced around 200,000 drones in the first months of this year, compared to just 60,000 last year.
As Forbes reports, the issue has gotten serious enough for Russia to send secondary helicopters to escort other helicopters.
The latest successful attack comes after countless attempts.
“Yesterday we wrote about the enemy’s attempts to operate drones against our army aviation,” a Moscow-friendly blogger behind the Telegram channel called Voivode Broadcasts wrote in a post. “Unfortunately… today they succeeded.”
Is this the first case of a drone successfully downing manned aircraft? Russian military channels say that a Ukrainian drone today shot down a Russian Mil Mi-8 helicopter as it was taking off in Donetsk region, at a considerable distance from the frontline. pic.twitter.com/JpyD4REzD7
— Yaroslav Trofimov (@yarotrof) July 31, 2024
Drone Warfare
According to the post, the helicopter was hit right after taking off.
The drones are “scary for armored vehicles, infantry, and helicopters,” another post by Voivode reads.
Mi-8 helicopters, which date back to the Soviet era, are conventionally used to transport troops.
Apart from taking down helicopters, Ukrainian forces have also used drones to attack troops and naval vessels. Earlier this year, footage emerged of a kamikaze naval drone destroying a Russian military speedboat in Crimea.
The purported range of these drones is astonishing. According to Ukrainian officials, forces hit a Russian supersonic bomber a record-breaking 1,100 miles from the Ukrainian border.
But it’s not just Ukraine relying heavily on drones. Earlier this week, Ukrainian forces were reported to have shut down 89 drones launched by Russia in one of the largest drone barrages this year, according to Euronews.
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