A Mi-8 Russian Helicopter is charging its batteries before a mission on Camp Echo, Iraq, Jan. 21, 2008. (Alan Moos/U.S. Army)
Ukraine’s intelligence service said a naval drone had struck down a Russian military helicopter for the first time and forced another one to return to an airfield after being hit.
An airborne Russian Mi-8 helicopter was hit on Tuesday by a Ukrainian Magura V5 drone near Cape Tarkhankut in occupied Crimea, the intelligence agency said in a statement on Telegram. The unmanned craft was equipped with R-73 missiles, it said.
The attack on the helicopter couldn’t be independently verified, and Russia hadn’t commented.
Russia launched several waves of missile and drone attacks against Ukraine, starting Monday night and continuing into the morning, according to the Ukrainian Air Force’s Telegram. The barrage included six Iskander ballistic missiles, one Kinzhal ballistic missile, six Kh-69 cruise missiles, eight Kh-22 cruise missiles and 40 Shahed drones.
Air defense systems were able to intercept six of the projectiles and 16 unmanned aerial vehicles, but lost track of 24 other drones, it said.
Ukraine has used drones in the region to attack a variety of targets, including Russia’s Black Sea fleet. Kremlin forces have been bombarding Ukraine’s infrastructure for months while also making slow gains along the front in Ukraine’s east.
The attacks come as both sides await the return to the White House of President-elect Donald Trump, who has pledged to end the war and suggested Kyiv should be “prepared to make a deal.”
Civilian infrastructure in Shostka in Ukraine’s northeastern Sumy region was targeted in a Tuesday morning strike, according to a statement on Telegram from the regional military administration.
Meanwhile, Ukraine attacked Russia with 68 drones overnight, the Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement on Telegram.
Drones were shot down in both the Bryansk region and Crimea. In the Smolensk region, an oil depot was hit and caught fire, according to Governor Vasily Anokhin. Airports in Kazan and Vladikavkaz were temporarily closed in the morning. Both later resumed operations, according to the Interfax news service.
