Ukraine Claims FPV Drone Hit On Russian Attack Helicopter
An Ukrainian first-person view drone has struck a Russian Mi-28 Havoc attack helicopter in flight, with released footage of the drone operator’s point of view making it the first documented attack of its kind.
The attack happened in Kursk Oblast, Russia, during Ukrainian forces’ ongoing incursion into the region. The Security Service of Ukraine’s (SBU) M2 special operations unit has claimed responsibility for operating the FPV drone used, but was not able to confirm if the drone’s strike on the Mi-28’s tail rotor resulted in the Mi-28 being shot down.
Footage of the video and two other attempted attacks was released on Wednesday following the leak of a video showing a recording of the incident projected on a screen. According to Ukrainian social activist Serhii Sternenko, the leak violated Ukrainian command’s prohibition on the release of such drone footage, with Sternenko claiming that there is footage of Ukrainian FPV drones destroying Russian Orlan and Zala surveillance drones that cannot be publicly released for the time being.
While the video is the first Ukrainian claim to have successfully struck a Russian helicopter with an FPV drone, Russian pro-war bloggers on the Telegram messaging application previously claimed that an Ukrainian FPV drone did shoot down a Russian Mi-8 utility helicopter near Donetsk on July 31. However, no footage from either side of the conflict has surfaced to corroborate the alleged incident.
This latest incursion into Kursk has been ongoing since August 6. While Russia’s defense ministry initially claimed to have forced Ukrainian troops to retreat back across the border, it subsequently deleted the claim from a statement it posted on Telegram, and is now claiming to have continued attacks on Ukrainian forces in Kursk overnight.
Russian pro-war bloggers have claimed that a Russian Ka-52 attack helicopter was shot down on the first day of the incursion, resulting in the death of its pilot, claiming that it was surprised by Ukrainian forces in Kursk while en route to a mission in Ukraine’s Sumy Oblast.