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On Tuesday, Ukraine's defense intelligence service (GUR) claimed that one of its drone boats had successfully shot down a Russian helicopter at sea – a first for any unmanned vessel in combat. Russian helicopters have previously engaged with missile-equipped Ukrainian surface drones, but this is the first time that an aircraft has been downed. <\/p>\n
Russian forces have begun deploying attack helicopters to locate and intercept Ukrainian drone boats at sea, before they can reach their targets in Crimea, Kerch Strait or Novorossiysk. During a skirmish off the coast of Cape Tarkhankut in the early hours of December 31, drones operated by the GUR's Group 13 encountered a Russian Mi-8 helicopter on patrol.<\/p>\n
According to the GUR, the drone destroyed the Mi-8 helicopter using an R-73 "SeeDragon" missile. A second helicopter was targeted and hit, but survived and managed to return to shore, the agency claimed. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n
The R-73 is a Soviet-era air-to-air missile dating to 1984, and upgraded versions are still in service today. It has a self-contained infrared seeker with wide-angle tracking capability, allowing it to lock on to targets up to 40 degrees off-axis (60 degrees in a modernized variant) – a valuable capability for a small-boat platform in rough surface conditions. It does not require a radar for targeting and has been field-adapted for a surface-to-air role before, with mixed success.<\/p>\n
In a claimed radio intercept recording, the pilot of the downed Russian Mi-8 "panics and explains the nature and consequences of the fire damage to the side," the GUR said in an audio release. <\/p>\n
\n#???????????????<\/a><\/p>\n
??“??? ???? ? ???? ? ?? ??? ??????!”<\/p>\n
????? ????????? ???????????? ????????????????? ????? ????????? ??????? ? ????????? ????? Magura V5 ??????????? ??????????? ??-8 ??????? ??????? ???????? ?? ???????? ????????? ???????? ?????.<\/p>\n
???? https:\/\/t.co\/H2GwvgVuWV<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/VqcH0tXhi2<\/a><\/p>\n
— Defence intelligence of Ukraine (@DI_Ukraine) December 31, 2024<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Russia's defense ministry has not confirmed the encounter, but said that its forces destroyed eight Ukrainian sea drones overnight on Dec. 30-31. One well-known Russian military blogger (milblogger), Voenny Osvedomitel, has confirmed the shoot-down. <\/p>\n